Neutron activation on NILE for quantitative chemical analysis – First results and outlook

¹ Materials Physics Center, CSIC-UPV/EHU, Paseo de Manuel Lardizabal 5, 20018 Donostia San Sebastian, Spain.
² Department of Analytical Chemistry, University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU, Barrio Sarriena s/n, E-48940 Leioa, Biscay, Spain
³ Chemistry Department, University of Pavia & C.S.G.I., 27100 Pavia, Italy.
⁴ ISIS Facility, UKRI-STFC, Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Didcot OX11 0QX, UK.
⁵ Donostia International Physics Center (DIPC), Paseo de Manuel Lardizabal 4, 20018 Donostia San Sebastian, Spain.
⁶ IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, Plaza Euskadi 5, 48009 Bilbao, Spain.

Published online: 27 June 2024

Abstract

The recently commissioned NILE facility at the ISIS Pulsed Neutron & Muon Source has been employed to perform neutron activation analysis with 14 MeV neutrons from its D-T source. In this first study of its kind on NILE, we have placed an intentional focus on the use of these new experimental capabilities for the study of cementitious materials. Following neutron irradiation, the resulting gamma-ray spectra enable us to assess the current capabilities of NILE for non-destructive and quantitative elemental analysis of specimens of direct industrial relevance, and demonstrate adequate sensitivity levels to both major and trace components, some of which are not accessible with other analytical techniques. The dependence of the spectroscopic data on source-to-sample distance also shows order-of-magnitude gains associated with the ability to implement neutron irradiation within a few mm from the source. All in all, the experimental results presented herein evince the suitability and yet-to-tapped potential of NILE to implement neutron-activation analysis with typical irradiation times well under one hour.