NSF-MRI 2013
Title
MRI: The Development of an Instrument for Isotope Production and Photon Activation Analysis (MRI Track 2)
Proj Summary
Each proposal must contain a summary of the proposed project not more than one page in length. The Project Summary consists of an overview, a statement on the intellectual merit of the proposed activity, and a statement on the broader impacts of the proposed activity.
%\centerline{{\bf PIs}: Tony Forest, Alan Hunt, Phil Cole, Valeriia Starovoitova
Project Description
\section{Introduction}
In June of 2012, the Idaho Accelerator Center received a grant from the state of Idaho as part of the Idaho Global Entrepreneurial Mission (IGEM) program. One of the proposed objectives was to research the use of an electron accelerator to produce copper isotopes for use in medical diagnostic procedures. Preliminary results of the work sponsored by this research have indicated that the production of copper isotopes strongly depends on the alignment of incident radiation to the sample. While a sample size of 2 cm is predicted to produce the highest number of isotopes per volume, a misalignment of more than a centimeter may reduce the amount of isotopes produced by a factor of at least two. A strong need now exists for a system to monitor the spatial distribution of the photons used to irradiate the samples. There is also a need to transport samples into and out of the radiation area. Based on these results, we propose to develop an instrument, that qualifies for the MRI category ``Track 2, that will be used to produce isotopes and perform Photon Activation Analysis (PAA) services.
a.) Information
\section{Information about the Proposal (a)}
\subsubsection{Instrument Location and Type (a.1)}
Physical location: Idaho Accelerator Center, Pocatello, ID
Instrument type: MRI-61
\subsubsection{Justification for Submission as a Development (Track 2) Proposal (a.2)} (1 page)
The proposed instrument will be developed by combining several instruments from different vendors as well as the "in house" construction of a remote transport system for sample placement. What may appear at first glance as an upgrade to an existing instrument is actually the development of the instrument specifically designed for Isotope production and Photon Activation Analysis. Preliminary results indicate that the "off-the-shelf" medical linac that we currently have acquired can be developed into an instrument that is more efficient, stable, and effective at providing the service of isotope production and photon activation analysis. A key ingredient to the instrument will be an in-house designed and constructed transport system that will remotely position samples at an optimum location for irradiation. The Idaho Accelerator Center's on staff engineers and its machine shop will be used to manufacture the infrastructure used to mount stepper motors and control systems for the transport system. The second key component is a beam control and feedback system that will allow operators to deliver a constant flux of photons to the specified sample location. The remote transport system and the photon flux monitor each represent a development instrument. A instrument for Isotope production and PAA can be developed by combining each of two instruments above with an electron accelerator. The development of this instrument will require the design and fabrication talents of engineers as well as the quality control and measurement expertise of scientists.
We propose to acquire and install the equipment for a photon beam monitoring system and a conveyor system to transport irradiation samples into and out of the radiation cell. This equipment, when combined with our existing facility, will increase our isotope production effiicency by at least two fold and reduce the systematic errors involved in PAA by ???????????
Matching support from the IGEM project will be used to design and install a conveyor system while the MRI will purchase the system components.
The conveyor, commonly referred to as a rabbit, will transport samples into the irradiation region and then to a shielded container (lead pig) after irradiation.
The transportation system is a necessity due to the high activity isotopes that may be produced.
When used as an instrument for PAA, the transportation system will eliminate the step of shutting the accelerator off in order to change to the control sample thereby risking a change in the experimental conditions whose uniformity is essential for meaningful measurements.
Once calibrated, the photon monitoring system would allow users to irradiate sample with a known amount of radiation.
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b.) Research Activities
\section{Research Activities to be Enabled (b)} ( 4 pages) The research activities to be enabled by the proposed instrument can be grouped into two categories; Isotope production and Photon Activation Analysis.
\subsection{current isotope crisis}
In fiscal year 2011, the Department of Energy's Isotope program had a budget of \$48.5 million that was used to send about 450 shipments of isotopes to over 150 industrial users and 100 researchers. ~\cite{FY2013CongBudgetOff} The Isotope Production Facility (IPF) at Los Alamos National Laboratory, the Brookhaven Linac Isotope Producer (BLIP) at Brookhaven National Laboratory, and processing facilities at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORL) are the three primary facilities for isotope production.
\subsection{accelerator based isotope production}
\subsection{interdisciplinary research enabled by the device}
Photon Activation Analysis (PAA) has been deployed as a research tool at the Idaho Accelerator Center for the past several years. The method has been used to quantify the content of materials based on the photons emitted for research fields ranging from environmental monitoring to coffee production.
c.) Description
\section{Description of Research Instrumentation and Needs (c)} (6 pages)
The proposed instrument will be composed of two major hardware acquisitions. The first component is a system to remotely transport samples into the radiation area and then return them to a shielded area after being activated by a high intensity photon beam. The irradiation cell, as well as the sample itself, has the potential to have a high level of activity that prevents local manual access. The remote transport system will be required to bring the sample out of the high radiation area and deposit the sample into a lead shield, if necessary. The proposed design has the additional benefit of eliminating the need to turn off the accelerator in order to access the area. In addition to reducing the sample retrieval time, this will enhance accelerator operational stability since the electron beam will remain on. Systematic effects related to the irradiation will be reduced with this increased operational stability.
The second component is a detector system with beam position feedback to measure the radiation field in the region of the sample and then monitor the photon flux during irradiation. A set of photon detectors (CVD diamond film based) will be purchased and mounted on a movable platform that will sweep the detectors through the brehmmstrahlung beam measuring its profile. A set of beam position monitors (BPMs) will be installed along with steering coils in order to steer the incident electron beam. The photon flux can then be maximized in the region of the sample in order to optimize the sample activity. After measuring the photon distribution, the detectors will be parked behind the sample in order to directly measure the photon flux during irradiation. A measurement of the flux during irradiation will document its stability and quanitfy the amount of incident radiation. An online data acquition systtem will provide a feedback system between the BPMs and the diamond photon flux deteectors. .
\subsection{CVD detectors}
The chemical vapor deposition (CVD) of polycrystalline diamond onto films has become an industry that currently provides "off-the-shelf" detectors among other applications.
GSI shows a signal output of about 2 ns when hit with a 200 MeV/u C-12 atom.
\subsection{Transport System}
\subsection{BPM monitors}
\subsection{permanent deflecting magnet}
d.) Impact
\section{Impact on Research and Training Infrastructure (d)} ( 2 pages)
The proposed instrument will be a facility for performing isotope production research and training accelerator physicists. The research on copper isotopes is well underway and quickly approaching a point where production for consumption is likely. The production of other isotopes for industry and research will also be under investigation using this device. The goal will be for the instrument to be self sustaining and a means of training students.
The instrument will be an opportunity to train students in the operation of an electron accelerator as well as the techniques for isotope production and PAA. Graduate students, once trained, would operate the accelerator as a means of supporting their studies at ISU.
e.) Management
\section{Management Plan (e)} ( 2 pages)
The IAC has a well established record of managing a facility that attracts researchers who purchase beam time. This proposal seeks to expand the services that the IAC can provide. The components used to develop this instrument may be considered ``off the shelf. The accelerator expertise of the IAC and the detector development expertise of the PI will be relied upon to construct a working instrument. The track records of both entities are quite sound for this project. The long term operations and maintenance plan will rely on the instruments ability to attract customers. The growth of demand for medical isotopes and the continued warning of an isotop production crisis by the Department of Energy is a strong indication that the instrument will be in demand should its ability to produce isotopes become well established.
References
\begin{thebibliography}{99} %--- Tony's ---- \bibitem{Zhang04}X.~Zheng {\it et al.}, Phys.~Rev.~Lett.~92 (2004) 012004.
\bibitem{FY2013CongBudgetOff} FY2013 Cngressionl Budget (http://science.energy.gov/~/media/budget/pdf/sc-budget-request-to-congress/fy-2013/Cong_Budget_2013_IsoptopeProductionandDistributionProgramFunding.pdf)
\end{thebibliography}
Bio Sketeches
Budget
\section{Budget}
\begin{table}[h]
\begin{center}
\begin{tabular}{ccc}
\multicolumn{1}{c}{Cost} &
\multicolumn{1}{c}{Match} &
\multicolumn{1}{c}{Description} \\
\hline\hline
50,000 & N & Conveyor system for isotope samples \\
20,000 & N & 2 electron Beam Position Monitors, steering coils, and power supplies\\
50,000 & N & CVD diamond detectors \\
28,000 & N & Data Acquisition System \\
22,000 & Y & end station \\
50,000 & Y & Professional \& Technical Services \\
\hline
\end{tabular}
\caption{Budget: Total expenses = \$220,000, Available Match \$72,000 (33 \%)}
\end{center}
\label{table:Projects}
\end{table}
Budget Justification.
OCS IntelliTrack, Inc has estimated that the transport system can be acquired for \$50,000. The system will be able to move up to a 100 lb mass from the user (low radiation) area to the end station (a high radiation area) with little to no interruption in beam operations. A set of beam position monitors and associated readout electronics from Bergoz instrumentation can be purchased for 5,340 euros each. I have budgeted an amount of \$20,000 to include coil steerer, power supplies and fluctuations of the US dollar with respect to the Euro. A quote from CIVIDEC instrumentation estimates the procurement cost of a single 3mm effective area CVD diamond detector at about 6,000 euros. I have budgeted \$50,000 for four of these CVD diamond detectors and the translation stages need to sweep them through the beam using a worm gear system that has analog position encoding. A modern VME based DAQ system with EPICs monitoring is estimated to cost \$28,000 and will include a 32 channel ADC ($6k), a readout controller($3k), a miniCrate($4k), a host server ($2k), a trigger supervisor ($3k) and a NIM Discriminator /Trigger/ECL output module ($10k).
The Idaho Accelerator Center will provide a shielded and station for the irradiation area at a cost of \$22,000 and the manpower to install the remote transport system from OCS IntelliTrack, Inc as well as the translation stages to position the CVD diamond detectors at an estimated cost of \$50,000. The original source of the funds is a grant from the state of Idaho that has already been awarded.