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Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
September 8–11, 2025
Atlanta, GA|Atlanta Marriott Marquis
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No impact from Savannah River radioactive wasps
The news is abuzz with recent news stories about four radioactive wasp nests found at the Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site in South Carolina. The site has been undergoing cleanup operations since the 1990s related to the production of plutonium and tritium for defense purposes during the Cold War. Cleanup activities are expected to continue into the 2060s.
Y. S. Horowitz, M. Moscovitch, J. M. Mack, H. Hsu, E. Kearsley
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 94 | Number 3 | November 1986 | Pages 233-240
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NSE86-A17266
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Electron Monte Carlo calculations using CYLTRAN and a new PHSECE (Photon-Produced Secondary Electrons) technique were carried out to estimate electron fluences and energy deposition profiles near LiF/Al and LiF/Pb material interfaces undergoing 60Co gamma irradiation. Several interesting and new features emerge: (a) although the buildup of the secondary electron fluences at the interfaces of the irradiated media is approximately exponential, the value of the electron mass fluence buildup coefficient, γ, is not equal to the electron mass fluence attenuation coefficient, β;(b) the β value of the attenuation of the gamma generated electron fluences at the cavity/medium interfaces is strongly dependent on the Z of the adjacent material; and (c) for LiF/Pb there is a significant “intrusion” energy deposition mode arising from sidescattering in the wall material (lead). These new features of interface dosimetry (at least items a and b) are incorporated into the photon general cavity expressions of Burlin (as modified by Horowitz, Dubi, and Moscovitch) and Kearsley and compared with experimental data.