Development of a low background liquid scintillation counter for a shallow underground laboratory

Applied Radiation and Isotopes : Including Data, Instrumentation and Methods for Use in Agriculture, Industry and Medicine
Jennifer L ErchingerMichael E Wright

Abstract

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory has recently opened a shallow underground laboratory intended for measurement of low-concentration levels of radioactive isotopes in samples collected from the environment. The development of a low-background liquid scintillation counter is currently underway to further augment the measurement capabilities within this underground laboratory. Liquid scintillation counting is especially useful for measuring charged particle (e.g., β and α) emitting isotopes with no (or very weak) gamma-ray yields. The combination of high-efficiency detection of charged particle emission in a liquid scintillation cocktail coupled with the low-background environment of an appropriately designed shield located in a clean underground laboratory provides the opportunity for increased-sensitivity measurements of a range of isotopes. To take advantage of the 35m-water-equivalent overburden of the underground laboratory, a series of simulations have evaluated the scintillation counter's shield design requirements to assess the possible background rate achievable. This report presents the design and background evaluation for a shallow underground, low background liquid scintillation counter design for sample measureme...Continue Reading

References

Dec 5, 2012·The Review of Scientific Instruments·C E AalsethR C Runkle

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Citations

Feb 27, 2017·Applied Radiation and Isotopes : Including Data, Instrumentation and Methods for Use in Agriculture, Industry and Medicine·J L ErchingerG A Warren
Aug 21, 2021·Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry·Olga Piraner, Robert L Jones

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