Radiation detectors employing contemporaneous detection and decontamination
AssigneeSavannah River Nuclear Solutions, LLC
InventorsGeorge K. Larsen, III, Simona E. Hunyadi Murph
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Abstract
Radiation detectors and methods of using the radiation detectors that provide a route for surface decontamination during use are described. The detectors utilize light illumination of an internal surface during use. Light is in the longer UV to near-infrared spectra and desorbs contamination from internal surfaces of radiation detectors. The methods can be carried out while the detectors are in operation, preventing the appearance of the negative effects of radioactive and non-radioactive contamination during a detection regime and following a detection regime.
Claims19
A method for decontaminating a radiation detector comprising:
- locating a radiation detector in radioactive communication with a potential radiation source;
- establishing detection conditions for the detector;
- monitoring the detector for a period of time to determine the presence, type or quantity of radiation in the potential radiation source;
- and
- impinging an internal surface of the detector with a light having a wavelength from about 255 nanometers to about 2500 nm during the period of time, wherein the impinging of the internal surface decontaminates radioactive material at the internal surface.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.