Measurements and calculations of air activation in the NuMI neutrino production facility at Fermilab with the 120-GeV proton beam on target

摘要

Measurements and calculations of the air activation at a high-energy protonaccelerator are described. The quantity of radionuclides released outdoorsdepends on operation scenarios including details of the air exchange inside thefacility. To improve the prediction of the air activation levels, the MARS15Monte Carlo code radionuclide production model was modified to be used forthese studies. Measurements were done to benchmark the new model and verify itsuse in optimization studies for the new DUNE experiment at the Long BaselineNeutrino Facility (LBNF) at Fermilab. The measured production rates for themost important radionuclides - $^{11}$C, $^{13}$N, $^{15}$O and $^{41}$Ar - arein a good agreement with those calculated with the improved MARS15 code.