A Self-Irradiation Correction for the Hybrid K-Edge Densitometer
Hybrid x-ray fluorescence and K-edge densitometry is used at nuclear fuel reprocessing facilities to determine the concentrations of uranium and plutonium in the input accountability vessel. The uranium concentration is determined by K-edge densitometry, that is, from the step-difference in transmission on either side of the K-absorption edge measured using a continuous x-ray spectrum on a vial of the solution defining a well-known geometry. Historically this was done using a basic region of interest analysis but recently to accommodate more challenging solution full spectral analysis has been developed with considerable benefits. In parallel with the transmission measurement, the relative plutonium-to-uranium concentration is obtained from the relative strength of the x-ray–induced K-shell x-ray fluorescence production measured at a backward angle in energy-dispersive mode. However, gamma-ray emissions from fission products present in the solution also cause fluorescence of the characteristic actinide x-rays. Uncorrected, these self-irradiation–induced x-rays can introduce a bias into the reported U:Pu result. The commonly implemented method to correct this interference requires acquisition of a long (~8 hour) passive spectra for the sample. Although effective, it is often impractical to perform a passive measurement on every sample such that a representative passive spectrum is used. We have developed an alternative correction methodology using only the active x-ray fluorescence spectrum that eliminates the requirement for the time-consuming passive count. The active self-interrogation methodology will be discussed and initial performance results presented.