Nondestructive high-sensitivity measurement method for activation estimation in accelerator room concrete

This study established a method for easily and quickly estimating the specific activity produced in the concrete walls and floors of accelerator rooms during long-term operation of accelerator,for advanced zoning of activated/nonactivated areas in planning the decommissioning of an accelerator.We propose a new,highly sensitive method for nondestructively estimating the specific activity in concrete that can be applied to activation zoning.In this method,instead of direct determination of the specific activities of important long-half-life radionuclides for decommissioning,such as 152 Eu and 60 Co,we determine the specific activities of short-half-life radionuclides,24 Na and 56 Mn,in situ to obtain neutron flux.The obtained neutron flux and accelerator operation history yield the specific activities of 152 Eu and 60 Co for the advance zoning of activated/non-activated concrete.This method is a powerful long-term prediction tool for concrete activation.