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DTRA’s advancements in nuclear and radiological detection
A new, more complex nuclear age has begun. Echoing the tensions of the Cold War amid rapidly evolving nuclear and radiological threats, preparedness in the modern age is a contest of scientific innovation. The Research and Development Directorate (RD) at the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) is charged with winning this contest.
John J. Volpe, D. Klein
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 8 | Number 5 | November 1960 | Pages 416-425
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NSE60-A25823
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Measurements of the relative U235 fission rates as a function of energy have been made for the TRX facility, a slightly enriched uranium, light water moderated critical assembly. The parameter directly measured is the ratio of the activity of a bare U235 foil to that of a similar foil enclosed in a box of absorbing material, which was either cadmium, boron, or gadolinium. The energy dependence associated with these ratios was obtained by the introduction of “effective cutoff energies” for the absorbing shields. A comparison is made with calculated values, based upon a simplified model for the neutron energy spectrum present, and the agreement is considered adequate.