Portable Radiation Detector
Published:3/26/2020Description:
The Problem:
Nuclear security has grown increasingly important given concerns about the potential availability of such materials to terrorist groups. To safeguard the public against the misuse of radioactive materials, detection devices that are capable of thwarting such attacks must be further refined, developed, and implemented. Most current systems for detecting and positioning radioactive materials are inflexible in how they can be deployed and are limited to portals, choke points, or other immobile uses. Other current systems suffer from a number of drawbacks, such as high cost, lack of positioning accuracy, slow response time, limitations to a particular energy range, etc.
The Solution:
Researchers at the University of Tennessee have developed a portable radiation detection device that is mobile and more cost efficient than traditional portal monitors. This device can be vehicle mounted, allowing for the rapid detection of radioactive materials over a wide area. Unlike current detection devices that simply alert the operator that there is radiation nearby, this device can locate the direction of the source. In addition, this device can be made with low-cost materials, and it detects radiation over a wide energy range in real time. This offers a great solution for emergency response teams where rapid detection and localization of radioactive materials is of utmost importance.
Benefits:
- Low cost
- Provides source localization
- Rapid response rate in real time
- Functional for a diversity of radiation sources
Applications:
- Emergency disaster response
Patent:
- U.S. 9,158,012
The Inventor:
Dr. Steve Skutnik is an associate professor in the Department of Nuclear Engineering at UT with a joint appointment at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. He received his B.S. in physics and M.S. in nuclear physics from Iowa State University in 2002 and 2005, respectively, and his Ph.D. in nuclear engineering from North Carolina State University in 2011. Dr. Skutnik’s research interests include reactor physics modeling and simulation for nuclear security applications and development of advanced methods for fuel cycle evaluation and assessment.