Michael D. Ripplinger

Real-time stack monitoring at the BaTek medical isotope production facility

Radioxenon emissions from fission-based radiopharmaceutical production are a major source of background concentrations affecting the radioxenon detection systems of the international monitoring system (IMS). Collection of real-time emissions data from production facilities makes it possible to screen out some medical isotope signatures from the IMS radioxenon data sets. This paper describes an effort to obtain and analyze real-time stack emissions data with the design, construction and installation of a small stack monitoring system developed by a joint CTBTO-IDC, BATAN, and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory team at the BaTek medical isotope production facility near Jakarta, Indonesia.

Detection in subsurface air of radioxenon released from medical isotope production

In order to better understand potential backgrounds of Comprehensive-Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty on-site inspection relevant gases, a sampling campaign was performed near Canadian Nuclear Laboratories in the Ottawa River Valley, a major source of environmental radioxenon. First of their kind measurements of atmospheric radioxenon imprinted into the shallow subsurface from an atmospheric pressure driven force were made using current on-site inspection techniques. Both atmospheric and subsurface gas samples were measured and analyzed to determine radioxenon concentrations. These measurements indicate that under specific sampling conditions, on the order of ten percent of the atmospheric radioxenon concentration may be measured via subsurface sampling.

Beta-cell Assembly for the Quad Gas Sampling Detector

The beta-cells used in the beta-gamma detector have taken time to develop and to standardize the assembly of them. In making the assembly routine it is important to have step by step assembly instructions as well as a list of potential problems and their solutions. This document attempts to accomplish these goals.

A Beta-Particle Hodoscope Constructed Using A Position-Sensitive Plastic Scintillator Active Element

A hodoscopic detector was constructed using a position-sensitive plastic scintillator active area to determine the location of beta-active micron-sized particulates on air filters. The ability to locate beta active particulates on air-sample filters is a tool for environmental monitoring of anthropogenic production of radioactive material. A robust, field-deployable instrument can provide localization of radioactive particulate with position resolution of a few millimeters. The detector employs a novel configuration of scintillating plastic elements usually employed at much higher charged particle energies. A filter is placed on this element for assay. The detector is intended to be sensitive to activity greater than 1 Bq. The physical design, position reconstruction method, and expected detector sensitivity are reported.