ASTM E2059-06(2010)

Integral Mode Dosimetry—As shown in 3.2, two different integral relationships can be established using proton-recoil emulsion data. These two integral reactions can be obtained with roughly an order of magnitude reduction in scanning effort. Consequently this integral mode is an important complementary alternative to the customary differential mode of NRE spectrometry. The integral mode can be applied over extended spatial regions, for example, perhaps up to as many as ten in-situ locations can be covered for the same scanning effort that is expended for a single differential measurement. Hence the integral mode is especially advantageous for dosimetry applications which require extensive spatial mapping, such as exist in Light Water Reactor-Pressure Vessel (LWR-PV) benchmark fields (see Test Method E1005). In low power benchmark fields, NRE can be used as integral dosimeters in a manner similar to RM, solid state track recorders (SSTR) and helium accumulation monitors (HAFM) neutron dosimeters (see Test Methods E854 and E910). In addition to spatial mapping advantages of these other dosimetry methods, NRE offer fine spatial resolution and can therefore be used in-situ for fine structure measurements. In integral mode scanning, both absolute reaction rates, that is I(E_T) and J(E_min), are determined simultaneously. Separate software codes need to be used to permit operation of a computer based interactive system in the integral mode (see Section 9). It should be noted that the integrals I(E_T) and J(E_min) possess different units, namely proton-recoil tracks/MeV per hydrogen atom and proton-recoil tracks per hydrogen atom, respectively.

1.1 Nuclear Research Emulsions (NRE) have a long and illustrious history of applications in the physical sciences, earth sciences and biological sciences (1,2) . In the physical sciences, NRE experiments have led to many fundamental discoveries in such diverse disciplines as nuclear physics, cosmic ray physics and high energy physics. In the applied physical sciences, NRE have been used in neutron physics experiments in both fission and fusion reactor environments (3-6). Numerous NRE neutron experiments can be found in other applied disciplines, such as nuclear engineering, environmental monitoring and health physics. Given the breadth of NRE applications, there exist many textbooks and handbooks that provide considerable detail on the techniques used in the NRE method. As a consequence, this practice will be restricted to the application of the NRE method for neutron measurements in reactor physics and nuclear engineering with particular emphasis on neutron dosimetry in benchmark fields (see Matrix E706).

1.2 NRE are passive detectors and provide time integrated reaction rates. As a consequence, NRE provide fluence measurements without the need for time-dependent corrections, such as arise with radiometric (RM) dosimeters (see Test Method E1005). NRE provide permanent records, so that optical microscopy observations can be carried out anytime after exposure. If necessary, NRE measurements can be repeated at any time to examine questionable data or to obtain refined results.

1.3 Since NRE measurements are conducted with optical microscopes, high spatial resolution is afforded for fine structure experiments. The attribute of high spatial resolution can also be used to determine information on the angular anisotropy of the in-situ neutron field (4,5,7). It is not possible for active detectors to provide such data because of in-situ perturbations and finite-size effects (see Section 11).

1.4 The existence of hydrogen as a major constituent of NRE affords neutron detection through neutron scattering on hydrogen, that is, the well known (n,p) reaction. NRE measurements in low power reactor environments have been predominantly based on this (n,p) reaction. NRE have also been used to measure the ⁶Li (n,t) ⁴He and the ¹⁰B (n,α) ⁷Li reactions by including ⁶Li and ¹⁰B in glass specks near the mid-plane of the NRE (8,9). Use of these two reactions does not provide the general advantages of the (n,p) reaction for neutron dosimetry in low power reactor environments (see Section 4). As a consequence, this standard will be restricted to the use of the (n,p) reaction for neutron dosimetry in low power reactor environments.