Method and apparatus for measuring the concentration of a component, for instance iron, in a material
AssigneeStiftelsen Isotoptekniska Laboratoriet
InventorsAdolf Ragnar Roland Umberto Einarsson Christell, Kaijo Aatto Matias Koski, Knut Lennart Ljunggren
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Abstract
Method and apparatus for measuring the concentration of various components, such as the iron component in iron ore, by exposing the material to irradiation between a neutron source and a gamma ray detector. The emitted gamma rays are captured by the detector and transformed into a signal which is transmitted to a recording device for measuring the gamma ray radiation.
Claims16
In the method of measuring the concentration of a component in a material sample, which at the measuring location is at rest or moves as a stream of material, that improvement which includes
- irradiating said sample with thermally-moderated neutrons and detecting resultant gamma ray emission from said sample to provide a base line measurement;
- irradiating said sample with unmoderated neutrons to provide a gamma ray emission from said sample and measuring same;
- and
- determining said concentration by comparison of known gamma ray emissions relative to concentration
- whereby the concentration of said component in said material sample may be determined.
Apparatus for measuring the concentration of a component in a material sample comprising a radioactive neutron source and a gamma ray detector, said apparatus being characterized by the provision of a first neutron moderator surrounding said neutron source, shielding means for protecting the detector from direct gamma radiation from the neutron source, a second neutron moderator surrounding the detector, shielding means for protecting the detector for neutrons emitted from the neutron source, and means for transforming the gamma rays captured by the detector to a signal and for transmitting the signal to a recording device.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.