Development and optimization of an underwater in-situ cerium bromide spectrometer for radioactivity measurements in the aquatic environment.

Autor: Tsabaris C; Hellenic Centre for Marine Research, Institute of Oceanography, P.O. Box 712, GR-19013, Anavyssos, Greece. Electronic address: tsabaris@hcmr.gr., Androulakaki EG; Hellenic Centre for Marine Research, Institute of Oceanography, P.O. Box 712, GR-19013, Anavyssos, Greece., Prospathopoulos A; Hellenic Centre for Marine Research, Institute of Oceanography, P.O. Box 712, GR-19013, Anavyssos, Greece., Alexakis S; Hellenic Centre for Marine Research, Institute of Oceanography, P.O. Box 712, GR-19013, Anavyssos, Greece., Eleftheriou G; Hellenic Centre for Marine Research, Institute of Oceanography, P.O. Box 712, GR-19013, Anavyssos, Greece., Patiris DL; Hellenic Centre for Marine Research, Institute of Oceanography, P.O. Box 712, GR-19013, Anavyssos, Greece., Pappa FK; Hellenic Centre for Marine Research, Institute of Oceanography, P.O. Box 712, GR-19013, Anavyssos, Greece; National Technical University of Athens, Department of Applied of Mathematic and Physical Sciences, Zografou Campus, Polythechnioupoli, GR-15780, Athens, Greece., Sarantakos K; Hellenic Centre for Marine Research, Institute of Oceanography, P.O. Box 712, GR-19013, Anavyssos, Greece., Kokkoris M; National Technical University of Athens, Department of Applied of Mathematic and Physical Sciences, Zografou Campus, Polythechnioupoli, GR-15780, Athens, Greece., Vlastou R; National Technical University of Athens, Department of Applied of Mathematic and Physical Sciences, Zografou Campus, Polythechnioupoli, GR-15780, Athens, Greece.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: Journal of environmental radioactivity [J Environ Radioact] 2019 Aug; Vol. 204, pp. 12-20. Date of Electronic Publication: 2019 Apr 02.
DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvrad.2019.03.021
Abstrakt: A new medium resolution gamma-ray spectrometer consisting of a cerium bromide (CeBr 3 ) crystal (2˝ x 2˝), is developed and optimized for radioactivity measurements in aquatic environments. This apparatus named GeoMAREA (Gamma-ray spectrometer for in-situ Marine Environmental Applications) is designed to control and prevent radio-contaminants in aquatic environments as well as to estimate the variation of natural radionuclides in marine systems for studying oceanographic processes. The system offers activity concentrations in Bq/m 3 for detected gamma-ray emitters in the energy range from 150 to 2600 keV, and can provide sequential continuous monitoring data in a stand-alone mode or it can be integrated in stationary/mobile platforms for (near) real-time applications. The photopeak efficiency values were estimated via the MCNPΧ code. Two experimental points were used to validate the theoretical estimations by deploying the system in a water tank with diluted reference sources such us Caesium-137 ( 137 Cs) and Potassium-40 ( 40 K). The system was subsequently deployed in the field along with a conductivity-temperature (CT) sensor, to measure 40 K and radon daughters in a region where submarine groundwater discharges (Anavalos, Kiveri, Greece) are present. The experimental calibration data was utilized to provide a first estimation for the background contribution around the photopeak of 40 K, attributed to the Cerium Bromide (CeBr 3 ) intrinsic activity.
(Copyright © 2019. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)
Databáze: MEDLINE
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