Activity Determination with High Precision for Component Disposal

摘要

The conditioning and disposal of radioactive components is subject to limits not only in terms of weight and volume but also in terms of radioactivity due to transport and storage conditions. It is reasonable to make the maximum use of all limits in order to minimize the disposal costs. This means that the radioactivity of the components should be determined as exactly as possible with no conservative estimates. The radioactivity of components to be disposed of comprises the radioactivity generated by the interaction of neutrons with the material and deposits of radioactive particles on the component surface (crud). While crud determinations are performed by sampling and analysis, the radioactivity of the base material is calculated nuclide-specific based on the material composition, the spectral neutron flux density distribution at the irradiated site, the irradiation time and the decay time. Material samples are taken from the components for individual verification of the radioactivity calculations.