International Society for Industrial Process Tomography

Development of tomography techniques using a compact fast neutron generator

R. E. Adams^1,3*, B. P. Soubelet¹, H. Kromer^1,2, R. Zboray^2,**, H. M. Prasser^1,2, V. Petrov³, A. Manera³

¹ ETH Zurich,Department of Mechanical and Process Engineering, Zurich, Switzerland

² Paul Scherrer Institute, Nuclear Energy and Safety Research Department, Villigen, Switzerland

³ University of Michigan, Department of Nuclear Engineering and Radiological Sciences, Ann Arbor MI, USA

^**Current affiliation: The Pennsylvania State University, Department of Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering, University Park PA, USA

^*Email: adams@lke.mavt.ethz.ch

ABSTRACT

This work gives an overview of ongoing development of tomography techniques based on a compact fast neutron generator. The three main lines of this work are the source development, detector array development, and studies of novel energy-selective techniques. The source development uses a custom D-D fast neutron generator at the Paul Scherrer Institute specifically designed for imaging applications. The status of the source details and performance are described. A prototype plastic scintillator detector array with a 6 mm pitch was used to produce test tomographic images with a 2 mm resolution using this custom source. A second-generation detector array, with a finer 2.5 mm detector pitch and greatly improved custom readout electronics is also described. This array was tested at first with an Ir-192 gamma source and achieved a spatial resolution of about 1 mm. A unique property of D-D neutron generators is their quasi-monoenergetic neutron output which varies with emission angle. This forms the potential basis of multi-energy imaging, in which specific elements can in principle be identified in a sample. The first feasibility simulations and measurements related to this technique are described. The potential areas of application of this imaging work and its outlook are also given.

Keywords Fast neutron tomography, gamma tomography, scintillator detector array

Industrial Application: General