Industrial Irradiators

for
Radiation Processing
Radiation processing beacame a reality with
the availability of particle accelerators and
artificially produced radioactive sources
(60Co and 137CS)
Industrial Irradiators
Electron accelerators widely used, 0.1 to 10 MeV
X-rays, mostly used in medical diagnostics and
radiography; some used in radiation processing
(3 to 10 MeV)
Isotope sources; medical sterilization and food
irradiation
Heavy ion accelerators, mostly for ion implantation
Synchrotrons, mostly for resist work
Nuclear reactors, for producing radioisotopes
Radioisotope vs Electron
Accelerator Source
Electron.
acceleration
Scanned electron
I)eam
Electrical input
X-ray conversion
plate
Electron or X-ray beam
available when needed,
in the desired direction
60CO or 137CS
photon emission,
continuous, in all
directions
Components of an Irradiation Facility
1. Radiation Source
Electron accelerator of specified power and
electron energy
60Co source of specified strength
2. Radiation Shielding
Concrete 3 m, for 10 MeV electrons) or
lead shielding, or pool of water between the
irradiator and workers
3. Target Room
The area where actual irradiations are done
Components of an Irradiation Facility (contd)
7. Shipping and Receiving Areas
They should be well separated from each other to
prevent mixing of irradiated and unirradiated products
8. Safety Devices and Monitors
Radiation monitors, set to shut - off the system at
predetermined dose
Air conditioning - temperature fluctuations detrimental
to processing
Large air flow - to maintain ozone and NO
x
levels low
Ozone monitors - to show when it is safe to enter the
target room
Electron Accelerators
Advantages
II Various power and electron energy levels available
.. Very high dose rates
.. Generally, short processing time
41 Cost increases only marginally with power
41 Cost increases. with electron energy
41 Can be switched off when not required
II Can be used for electrons or X.. rays
41 Directional beam (horizontal or vertical)
.. Better utilization o'f beam energy >95%
availability reported
The penetration of electrons increases with increasing
electron energy as shown by the depth/dose curves
Depth (g1cm
2
)
The dose uniformity increases with increasing electron
energy
The penetration of electrons increases with increasing
electron energy as shown by the depth/dose curves
Q)
(f)
o
o
Q)
>
0-
+-'
co
-
Q)
a:
Depth (g/cm
2
)
The dose uniformity increases with increasing electron
energy
The penetration of electrons increases with increasing
electron energy as shown by the depth/dose curves
(I)
en
o
C
(I)
>
.-
-
S
-
(I)
a::
Depth (g/cm
2
)
The dose uniformity increases with increasing electron
energy
The penetration of electrons increases with increasing
eleclron energy as shown by the depth/dose curves
(1)
CJ)
o
c
(1)
>
.-
-
co
-
(1)
a:
Depth (g/cm
2
)
The dose uniformity increases with increasing electron
energy
Electron Beam Penetration
Typical Depth/Dose Curve for 10 MeV Electrons
6 5 234
Depth (g/cm
2
)
Q) 140 iC;;;;I,Vptimum Thickness of Sample
~ 120 j--------::==-=--+--- Maximum Relative Dose
~ 100 :='::::::::::::::::: Minimum Required Dose
>
80 .. ' .
- 60 .. ,
. . .
,.. .. .
..:::: 40 :: :
Q) 20 :: :: B
a: 0 I:::::::::::::::':
o 1
Dose first increases with penetration and then
decreases
Penetration proportional to 1/density
At optimum thickness, dose uniformity is 12.5
%
ELECTRON BEAM PENETRATION
One-Sided vs Two-Sided Irradiation
for 10 MeV Electrons
By optimizing two-sided irradiation, the effective
penetration of e- beam can be increased by a factor of >2
Dose
7 8 5 6 4 3 2 1
/
., -,
"
! ~
~
lid
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til
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140
Q) 120
~ 100
C 80
(1)
. ~ 60
16
Q) 40
a:: 20
o
o
Depth (g/cm)
..One-Sided
___ Two-Sided
TOne-Sided
Dose Distribution in Water as a Function of Depth
(Gamma Radiation from 60Co; Saylor, 1997)
1.2
0)1
>
; 0.8
-
~ 0.6
-
Q) 0.4
tn
o
C 0.2
O + - - - - - r - - . - - - - r - - . - - ~ - - - - , - - - . . _ _ _ _ _ _ ,
o 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
Distance from 60CO Source (cm)
Comparison of Relative Dose vs Depth
For 60CO y-Rays and 5 MeV X-Rays
CI>
tn
o
C
CI>
>
.-
-
CO
-
CI>
a:
Depth in Product (em)
Fpr sterilizations of typical packages of medical
disposables
I Radioactive Decay of 137Cs and 60Co I
100
90
-
80
137CS
~
0
70
-
>.
60
...
.-
50
>
.-
40
...
0
<C
30 60CO
20
10
0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30
Time (years)
Capital Cost per kW of Electron
Accelerator .
(lOMeV)
300000
250000
~
200000
150000
-
100000
50000
0
0 20 40 60 80 100
Power (kW)
Cost vs Power of 10 MeV Accelerators
100 80 40 60
kW
20
0-+--.....- ......--......- .......---1
o
1000000
5000000
-
t/)
<3 2000000
;; 4000000
::)
~ 3000000
Electron Processing
Coatings
12%
H.eat-
Shrmkable
34%
Rubber
10%
Other
60/0
Foam r = . : : : : : : : : : : ; ~ ~
4%
Wire
Insulation
34%
-500 Accelerators Worldwide (Saunders,1988; now -1000)
-150 1. - Sources Woldwide for Medical Sterilization and
Food Irradiation
Energy Spectrum of X-Rays from 5 MeV
Electrons
..-
6
rI.l
.....
.
5
:=
;:J
4
~
~
3
ea
~
2
.....
.
,!:J
1
<
0
----
0 1 2 3 4 5
E (MeV)
The average energy of X-rays is 1.06 MeV
Nominal Equivalence of Electron
Accelerators and 60Co
50 kW of electron beam =3.38 MCi 60CO
X-rays from 5 MeV, 200 kW electron accelerator
=16 kW=1.1 MCi 60CO
X-rays from 10 MeV, 50 kW electron accelerator
=10 kW =0.67 MCi of 60CO
Types of Scanning in Low-Energy
Electron Accelerators
)'
Filament

CURTAIN TYPE
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SCANNING TYPE
Scanning
coil -.
Accelerator
Tube
Direct Electron Accelerator
Principle Of Operation (Cleland,1992)
Low Voltage High Voltage Gun
AC Power DC Power I
-Q. ,..-------..... -Q.
,-----'--1 High 1------1
Voltage
'----I Generator
Control
System
,--I--L-." Beam
Scan Magnet
Chamber
Foil Window
Scanned Electron Beam
Traveling-Wave Linear Electron Accelerator
Load
Cavity Resistance
Resonators
Klystron
3000 MHz
Buncher
Vacuum esonator
Tank
Electrol'l-----'1-.-I Electron
Gun Beam
--e!:;:::

Window
atching
Synchronization

Silicon Lithography
1111111 hv or e-
'<;l- Mask
Treated Resist
Areas "'t- Silicon Oxide
"'t- Silicon
Negative Positive

Development
Patterns
\\ -After Etching
Characterization of the Irradiator
Source: e-
Determine depth/dose curves wih
a wedge
h > Expected
enetration Alunimum
-<d=s Wedge
'<d"=" Film
"'- OJr Dosimeter
Determine dose profile
~ ~ Beam spot
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Characterization of the Irradiator
Source: e- 'Y
Determine Dose Profile
00 -==Scan Yes Yes
o
Determine Nominal Dose Received
by Product
Product Conveyor System
Yes Yes
Conclusions
Gamma irradiation would continue to be an important
component of industrial radiation processing
Industrial electron irradiation would continue to grow
for most of the current products
Areas of major growth for electron accelerators are
most likely to include environmental (water purification,
sewage sludge irradiation, flue gas irradiation), viscose,
and advanced composites
The availability of a good variety of electron
accelerators in a wide energy ranae (0.2 to 10 MeV) is
conducive to growth of the radiation processing
industry
Continued effort to increase understanding and
usefulness of the technology would also help the
growth of this industry