Was to Achieve an Adequate Epithermal Neutron Beam (Energy Range from 0.5 Ev to 10 Kev) with Low Fast and Thermal Neutron Components for Boron Neutron Capture Therapy
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AN ABSTRACT OF THE THESIS OF Kanokrat Tiyapun for the degree of Master of Science in Radiation Health Physics presented on March 12, 1997. Title: Epithermal Neutron Beam Design at the Oregon State University TRIGA Mark-II Reactor (OSTR Based on Monte Carlo Methods. Redacted for privacy Abstract approved: Stephen E. Binne Filter and moderator assemblies were designed for the tangential beam port of the Oregon State University TRIGA Mark-II reactor (OSTR). The objective of this design was to achieve an adequate epithermal neutron beam (energy range from 0.5 eV to 10 keV) with low fast and thermal neutron components for boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT). A Monte Carlo neutron calculation was performed with the Monte Carlo N-Particle Transport Code (MCNP) to simulate a model of the reactor core and neutron irradiation facilities. The two-step calculations performed included criticality and epithermal neutron beam design. Results indicated that the multiplication factor (keff) was 1.032 and an optimized epithermal neutron beam can be obtained by using heavy water as a moderator in beam port 4 (radial piercing beam port), and sulfur and lithium carbonate ( Li2CO3) as fast neutron and thermal neutron filters in beam port 3 (tangential beam port), respectively.Since the beam size is usually larger than a brain tumor, collimation of the epithermal neutron beam was required. By using different diameters of a cone-shaped collimator, a 12 cm diameter had better performance than other diameters. An epithermal flux of 1.28x108 n cm-2s"1, a thermal neutron flux of 1.34x107n crri2s-1 and a fast neutron flux of 1.14x107 n cm-2s-1 was derived for an operating power of 1 MW. In the event that a higher reactor power was available and suitable fast neutron and gamma ray shields were designed, a modified beam port can produce a sufficient epithermal neutron intensity with negligible fast and thermal neutron and gamma ray contamination for BNCT. °Copyright by Kanokrat Tiyapun March 12, 1997 All Rights Reserved Epithermal Neutron Beam Design at the Oregon State University TRIGA Mark II Reactor (OSTR) Based on Monte Carlo Methods by Kanokrat Tiyapun A THESIS submitted to Oregon State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science Presented March 12, 1997 Commencement June 1997 Master of Science thesis of Kanokrat Tiyapun presented on March 12, 1997 APPROVED: Redacted for privacy Major Prfessor, representing Rai iatio ealth Physics Redacted for privacy Head of Department of Nuclear Engineering Redacted for privacy Dean of Grad e School I understand that my thesis will become part of the permanent collection of Oregon State University libraries. My signature below authorizes release of my thesis to any reader upon request. Redacted for privacy Kanokrat Tiyapun, Author CONTRIBUTION OF AUTHORS I appreciate the helpful suggestions and guidance for improving my thesis from Dr. Stephen E. Binney, my major professor and advisor, who was involved in the design, analysis, interpretation and examination of various drafts.I would like to thank the member of my committees: Dr. Roy D. Haggerty, Dr. Todd S. Palmer and Dr. Fred L. Ramsey for final editing.I am grateful to Christopher E.D. Vostmyer who assisted in creating the reactor core input file and compiled MCNP executable. I also wish to thank Dr. Todd S. Palmer and Dr. Andrew C. Klein for their generous help in the interpretation of data. Special thanks are extended to Arthur D. Hall and Scott A. Crail, who provided nuclear data for the TRIGA Mark-II Reactor.I want to express my sincere appreciation to Hsing Hui Lee who has contributed to the completion of my thesis and made many wise suggestions.Finally, without the encouragement of my mother (Rachanee Tiyapun), my father (Nimit Tiyapun), my sister(Chittima Tiyapun) and my brother (Theerayut Toojinda), this work would not have been possible. TABLE OF CONTENTS Pa 2e 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1. Boron Neutron Capture Therapy (BNCT) Description 2 1.2. Advantages of BNCT 2 1.3. Requirements for BNCT 4 1.4. Neutron Sources for BNCT 6 1.4.1.Research Reactor 6 1.4.2.Radioisotopes 6 1.4.3.Accelerator 7 1.4.4. Tandem Cascade Accelerator (TCA) 7 1.4.5.Inertial Electrostatic Confinement (IEC) System 8 1.4.6.Spallation 9 1.4.7. U-235 Fission Plate 9 2. LITERATURE REVIEW 10 2.1. Clinical Trials and the Development of BNCT at the Brookhaven Medical Research Reactor (BMRR) and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Reactor (MITR) 10 2.1.1.Clinical Trials at BMRR and MITR 11 2.1.2. Development for Optimal Neutron Beam at BMRR and MITR 12 2.2. Epithermal Neutron Beam Design for PBF 15 2.3. Epithermal Neutron Beam Design for GTRR 16 2.4. Epithermal Neutron Beam Design for MURR 19 2.5. Conceptual Design of Epithermal Neutron Beam for TRIGA Reactor20 2.6. Epithermal Neutron Beam Design for Low-Power Reactor 20 TABLE OF CONTENTS (Continued) Page 2.7. Epithermal Neutron Beam Design outside the U.S. 21 2.7.1. PLUTO Research Reactor 22 2.7.2. DIDO Research Reactor 23 2.7.3. High Flux Reactor (HFR) at Petten 25 2.7.4. High Flux Australian Reactor (HIFAR) in Australia 27 2.7.5.Epithermal Neutron Beam Design for FIR-1 28 2.7.6.Epithermal Neutron Beam Design for LVR-15 29 2.8. Clinical Trials and Neutron Beam Designs in Japan 29 2.9. Beam Parameters for Several Types of Epithermal Neutron Beams 36 3. OSTR FACILITY DESCRIPTION 37 3.1. Safety Features of a TRIGA Reactor 37 3.2. Oregon State University (OSU) TRIGA Mark-II Reactor (OSTR) Description 38 3.2.1.Fuel Elements and Reflector 40 3.2.2.Control Rods 42 3.2.3. Beam Ports 42 3.2.4. Thermal Column and Thermalizing Column 43 4. MCNP DESCRIPTION AND MCNP MODEL OF THE OSTR 44 4.1. Monte Carlo N-Particle Transport Code (MCNP) 44 4.1.1.General Description of MCNP 44 4.1.2. Monte Carlo Method 45 4.2. MCNP Model of the OSTR 45 4.2.1. Geometry of Reactor Core and Shielding 47 4.2.2. Geometry of Irradiation Facilities 55 4.2.3. Geometry of Void Region 58 4.3. Material Compositions in MCNP Input File 58 4.4. Surface Source File or KCODE Fission Volume Source File 60 TABLE OF CONTENTS (Continued) Page 4.4.1.Criticality Calculation 60 4.4.2.Normalization Factor for a 1 MW Power Reactor 61 4.5. Neutron Beam Calculation 62 4.5.1. MCNP Tally 63 4.5.2.Variance Reduction Techniques 63 4.6. Plot Geometry Plotter and MCPLOT Tally Plotter 66 4.6.1.Plot Geometry 66 4.6.2. MCPLOT Tally Plotter 67 4.7. Moderator and Filter Selection for Epithermal Neutron Beam Design 67 4.7.1.Characteristics of Suitable Materials for BNCT 67 4.7.2.Epithermal Beam Optimization 68 4.8. Epithermal Neutron Beam Design at OSTR 69 5. RESULTS 70 5.1. Criticality 70 5.2. SSW region in Surface Source Write File 72 5.3. Moderator Material Selection in Beam Port 4 73 5.4. Reflector in Beam Port 3 77 5.5. Filter in Beam Port 3 79 5.5.1. Gamma Ray Filter 79 5.5.2.Fast Neutron Filter 80 5.6. Neutron Beam Collimator 81 5.6.1. Neutron Flux and Current 82 5.6.2.Monodirectionality 83 5.6.3.Collimator Length 85 TABLE OF CONTENTS (Continued) Page 5.7. Thermal Neutron Filter 86 5.8. Final Design of Beam Port 3 88 5.8.1.Collimator Material 89 5.8.2.Final Beam Direction 91 6. Discussion 96 6.1. Thermal Neutron and Epithermal Neutron Measurement Position 96 6.2. Calculated and Measured Thermal and Epithermal Neutron Fluxes 97 7. Conclusion 98 7.1. Summary 98 7.2. Recommendations for Further Study 99 BIBLIOGRAPHY 101 APPENDIX: MCNP Input for Oregon State University TRIGA Mark-II Reactor 109 LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page 1.1.Tandem cascade accelerator 8 2.1.Horizontal section of the BMRR epithermal neutron beam showing the mixing assembly of Al and A1203 in moderator tanks 13 2.2.The cross section view of MITR-II medical therapy beam with its system of shutters and sulfur and aluminum filters installed at the graphite collimator region 15 2.3.Boron NCT facility at PBF (conceptual design) 17 2.4.Horizontal section of GTRR including filter inside biomedical irradiation port 18 2.5.The diagram of NCT beam in the thermal column of the MURR 18 2.6.The TRIGA Mark-II reactor for BNCT using thermal and epithermal neutron 21 2.7.Horizontal section of a design using a235Ufission plate coupled to a reactor 22 2.8.Horizontal section of a design using a slab reactor 22 2.9.Diagram of the filter rig producing an iron filtered 24 keV neutron beam 24 2.10. Diagram of the B2 beam located at the center of the fuel element 26 2.11. Model of the DIDO reactor 27 2.12. Vertical section of HIFAR and 10H facility in Australia 28 2.13.(a) The top view configuration of the LVR-15, and (b) the lateral view configuration of the LVR-15 30 2.14. Vertical cross section of an epithermal neutron beam with the spent fuel basket at the Musashi reactor 31 2.15. The Configuration of the epithermal neutron column of TRIGA reactor in Japan 33 LIST OF FIGURES (Continued) Figure Page 3.1.The vertical section of TRIGA Mark-II reactor 39 3.2.The horizontal section of TRIGA Mark-II reactor 39 3.3.Cutaway view of a typical TRIGA Mark-II core arrangement 40 3.4.The core configuration in OSTR 41 4.1.The horizontal section of the reactor core model by MCNP version 4b 48 4.2.The horizontal section of the reactor core, irradiation facilities and a void region model by MCNP version 4b 49 4.3.The vertical section of control rods (a) a standard control rod (b) a transient control rod 50 4.4.The vertical section of the reactor core model (px = 0) by MCNP version 4b 52 4.5.The vertical section of the reactor core model (py = 0) by MCNP version 4b 52 4.6.The vertical section of the reactor core and the Lazy Susan 53 4.7.The horizontal section of the reactor core and the Lazy Susan model 54 5.1.Calculated keff values with % control rod withdrawn in the reactor core model 72 5.2.Calculated neutron flux at the end of beam port 3 (air filled) with several moderator materials in beam port 4 75 5.3.The ratio of calculated epithermal neutron to fast neutron flux at the end of beam port 3 vs.