Radiation Testing for High-Resolution Radiation-Hardened Camera System (Final CRADA Report)

Abstract

The nuclear energy industry needs higher-image quality and higher rad-hard vision systems for refueling and inspection operations that are required every 12-18 months for all operating commercial reactors. During refueling operations, the serial numbers of fuel assemblies need to be visually verified in a challenging high radiation environment with dose rates on the order of 1kGy/hr. at the top of the core (approximately 10 days after shutdown). Vega Wave Systems has developed and built a radiation hard vision system that: 1. has high radiation hardness, 2. demonstrated best in the industry image quality, 3. has small size and weight, and 4. does not suffer from radiation-induced noise. ANL-1060 (02/13/2023) The proprietary Enduray vision system from Vega Wave Systems, Inc. is designed to withstand more than 400x the radiation level of the Vidicon-based systems, currently the highest radiation tolerant system in use today. The Van De Graaff (VDG) electron accelerator at Argonne National Laboratory is ideally suited for testing of Enduray vision system. VDG provides a broad band (up to 3 MeV) x-ray source that reasonably approximates the energy and spectrum of the gamma radiation expected at the top of a nuclear core 10 days after shutdown (~1kGy/hr.), is easily controlled for variable tests, and will not activate the parts under radiation for ease of timely and close inspection and characterization of the system in case of operational issues.