Experimental Investigation of Impact on Submerged Detector with Changing Temperature

Turkington, G., Gamage, K. and Graham, J. (2020) Experimental Investigation of Impact on Submerged Detector with Changing Temperature. IEEE Nuclear Science Symposium (NSS-2020), Boston, MA, USA, 31 Oct - 07 Nov 2020.

[img] Text
223505.pdf - Accepted Version
Restricted to Repository staff only

39kB

Abstract

A novel cadmium telluride detector has been designed for the in-situ detection of strontium-90 contamination at nuclear decommissioning sites. Wide band-gap detectors such as cadmium telluride are capable of operation at room temperature without the need for space consuming cooling systems. The detector has been designed for deployment directly into the confined space of groundwater boreholes, however it is therefore subject to influence from changes in environmental conditions. For in-situ monitoring applications it is vital that the detector’s performance in different conditions is understood. In this work, the detector was placed in water baths of different temperatures from 4 ◦C to 15 ◦ C and the activity from a collimated strontium-90 sourced was measured over 5 minuted intervals for periods of 120 minutes. The performance of the detector in synthetic groundwater and tap water was characterised. It was found that the internal temperature of the detector was more stable in colder water and the counts in the detector deviated less over time in colder conditions, with a maximum of a 4 % decrease in total counts for a 5 minute period. However, in warmer conditions, the internal temperature of the sensor rose by 2 ◦ C, and a fluctuation in counts of 8 % was observed. Meanwhile, no significant variation in counts was observed when comparing synthetic groundwater and tap water. These results indicate that the composition of groundwater may not be a key factor when considering the deployment of an in-situ detector but the ambient temperature of the groundwater must be monitored and considered when assessing counting data from the detector.

Item Type:Conference or Workshop Item
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Gamage, Professor Kelum
Authors: Turkington, G., Gamage, K., and Graham, J.
College/School:College of Science and Engineering > School of Engineering > Systems Power and Energy
Related URLs:

University Staff: Request a correction | Enlighten Editors: Update this record