ML20199J323
| ML20199J323 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | 07000258 |
| Issue date: | 05/25/1982 |
| From: | Mandel H ILLINOIS, UNIV. OF, URBANA, IL |
| To: | NRC OFFICE OF NUCLEAR MATERIAL SAFETY & SAFEGUARDS (NMSS) |
| Shared Package | |
| ML20199J248 | List: |
| References | |
| 20783, NUDOCS 8604090500 | |
| Download: ML20199J323 (11) | |
Text
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[. University %f Illinois at UrbarO-Chan1paign g
oiv.sion of Envuonniental Health and Sufety w u....., n...,..,.a
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Sht 0d 25 Moy, 1982 License Management Branch Division of Fuel Cycle and Material Safety 4
Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards
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JUN g 1982
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C RE: Special Nuclear Materials License # SNM-236 pg Mad Section 4
Gentlemen:
N The University of Illinois at Urbana / Champaign wishes to renew Special fiuclear Materials License SNM-236. License SNM-236 as issued on 25 November,1977 and amended on 29 August,1980 and on 1 February,1982 authorizes possession and use of :
a.
- 240 grams encapsulated in Pu-Be Neutron Sources.
b.
Plutonium-239 :
3 grams incorporated in the form of foils, counters or plated sources.
c.
Uranium-233 1 gram incorporated in the form of foils, counters or plated sources.
d.
Uranium-235 12 grams incorporated in the form of foils, counters, or plated sources.
e.
Uranium-235
- 300 grams in the form of UF '
6 f.
Plutonium-238 : 5 microcuries encapsulated in a sealed source.
Supplementary material to assist you in consideration of this application for renewal is attached. Please direct all correspondence regarding this matter to me.
Sin erel,
YW HM/ws Hector Mandel, Attachments Health Physics Section 8604090500 860128
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APPLICATION FOR SPECIAL NUCLEAR MATERIAL LICENSE Supplemental Sheet 1 of 10 1.
Applicant University of Illinois at Ucbana/ Champaign Urbana, Illinois (Send all correspondence care of:
Hector Mandel, Head Health Physics Section Division of Environmental Health and Safety University of Illinois at Urbana / Champaign 343 McKinley Hospital 1109 South Lincoln Av.
Urbana, II. 61801)
I 2.
Specification of Activities to be Performed Item A, Pu-Be sources will be used for performing various types of teaching and research experiments such as activation analysis, neutron counting and detection, and driving different types of subcritical assemblies.
Items B,C, and D will.be used in foils, counters and plat'ed sources for various expg3iments in Nuclear Engineering, Physics and the other natural sciences. For 0 and Plutonium, no single unit will contain more gn 50 2
U and mg and the coating deposits would average about 200 to 300 mg/cm.
Plutonium units will not be f abricated at the University, but will be 235 purchased or borrowed.
0 units may be purchased, borrowed, or fabricated from Uranyl Nitrate of high enrichment.
Counter designs would be of three types:
Parallel-plate fission counters requiring foils 5.0 to 7.5 cm in a.
l diameter.
b.
Cylindrical fission counters having a coated area around 7.4 cm long and an inside diaineter of about 2 cm.
Spiral fission counters in the shape of a cylinder 2.5 cm high and c.
2.5 cm 0.D.
The spiral of Platinum is coated on both sides and has an 2
area of about 100 to 200 cm,
Item E, 300 gm of 0 in the form of UF6 powder will be u' sed in 235 experiments at the University of Illinois Adyanced TRIGA Reactor (facilitylicenseR-115). Use of the material will be as described, in detail, in & letter from Hector Mandel to James G. Keppler dated 3 June, 1980 a copy of which is in your files.
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. Item F, 5 uCi of Pu be used at the Nuclear Physics Laboratory to calibrate high-energy Nal detectors. The Plutonium is embedded in Carbon-13 to produce a 6.13 MeV gamma-ray which results from the decay 16 of N
This high-energy gamma-ray is used to calibrate the detectors.
Specification o_f Special Nuclear Materials 3.
f a.
Plutonium: 240 gm (15 curies) as encapsulated Pu-Be neutron sources, Monsanto Research Corporation, Model MRC-N-SS-W-Pube. Source 239 sizes to range from 16 gm to 160 gm contained Pu (1 to 10 Ci).
b.
Plutonium-239: 3 gm (190 mci) as foils, counters or plated sources.
c.
Uranium-233: 1 gm (9.15 mci) as foils, counters or plated sources.
1 p.
Uranium-235: 12 gm (P5 uCi) as foils, counters, or plated sources.
Urcnium-735: 300 gm of UF6 powder.
f.
Plutonium-238: 5 uCi encapsulated in a sealed source.
4.
Technical Qualifications The radiation safety program is carried out by the Health Physics staff under the watchful eyes of. the Radiation Hazards Cenmittee. Training and experience of the Committee members is as follows:
Janice M. Bahr, Associate Professsor of Animal Science and ' Physiology 1964 - Viterbo College, Lacrosse, Wi.,
B.A., Biology 1968 - University of Illinois, Urbana, 11., M.S., Zoology 1974 - University of Illinois, Urbana, II., Ph.D., Physiology 1964 - 1966: Science Instructor, Sacred Heart High' School, Durand, Wi.
1967 - 1968: Teaching Assistant, University of Illjnois, Urbana, Il.
1969 (summer):
RecipientofNSFResearchGrant,Unjversityof Massachusetts, Amherst.
1970 - 1972:
Endocrinology Trainee, Department of Physiology, University of Illinois, Urbana,, II.
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1972 - 1974: Research Assistant, Department of Animal Pience, University of Illinois, Urbana, 11.
1974: Research Associate, Department of Animal Science, sniversity of Illinois, Urbana, 11.
1974 - 1979: Assistant Professor in Animal Science, University of Illinois, Urbana, 11.
1979 - present: Associate Professor in Animal Science and Physiologyy, University of Illinois, Urbana, Ill.
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Howard S. Ducoff, Professor of Physiology and Biophysics t
1942 - City College of New York, B.S.
1953 - University of Chicago, Ph.D., Physiology 1946 - 1957: Full-time and part-time investigator at Argonne National Laboratory, including two year's research with Arsenic-76.
1957 - present:
Physiology research and teaching radiophysiology, University of Illinois, Urbana John W. Gomperts, Director of Puruchases, University o.f Illinois, Urbana, Ill.
Richard I. Guumport, Associate Professor of Biochemistry
[
1960 - University of Illinois, B.S.
1968. University of Chicago, Ph.D., Biochemistry 1968 1971: Postdoctoral fellow, Department of Biochemistry, Stanford University School of Medicine 1971 - present: Assistant / Associate Professor of Biochemistry, University of Illinois, Urbana, Ill.
Alfred D. Hanson, Professor of Physics Professor Hanson has not worked directly with radioisotopes recently but has been associated with the University of Illinois High Energy Physics. Group (for more than twenty-five years) working primarily with high energy x-rays from our Betatrons. Presently, he is the project leader in developing a new high intensity, intermediate energy (a few hundred MeV) accelerator.
Previously, he worked for his thesis at Wisconsin with the 4 MeV electrostatic generator and continued this work at Los Alamos, New Mexico.
In this work, he was mostly concerned with mono-energetic neutrons having energies from a few kilovolts to five MeV but also worked considerably with isotopic neutron sources.
In this work he has developed and used a number of neutron detectors (best known being the Hanson-McKibben long counter) which are useful in survey work for determining health hazards around machines and he has assisted in such surveys.
Jack T. Harroun, Superintendent of Building Services 3
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John P. Hummel, Professor of Physical Chemistry and of Physics Present Chairman of the IllllC Radiation lla7ards Committee 1953 - Handled low levels of radioactive Tin at University of Rochester 1956 - University of California, Berkely, Ph.D., Chemistry 1953 - 1956:
Did radiochemical work at University of California Radiation Laboratory. In this work, Professor Hummel handled several alpha emitters (Bismuth through FermiuT.). The activity levels varied 10 from 100 dpm to 10 dpm. Also, he has had some experience in handling very radioactive cyclotron targets 1956 - present: Has taught advanced Radiochemistry c.ourses and has pursued research in High Energy Physics and Radiochemistry.
Stephen K. Knellrr, Associate Professor of Veterinary Clinical Medicine - Chief of Radiology Section, Collene of Veterinary Medicine 1968 - Purdue University, D.V.M.
1971 - University of Georgia, M.S., Veterinary Medicine 1972 - Certified by the American College of Veterinary Radiology 1968 - 1969: Practicing Veterinarian, Parker, Indiana 1969 - 1973:
Instructor, Veterinary Radiology, University of Georgia 1973 - 1975: Assistant Professor, Anatomy and Radiology, University of Georgia 1975 - Present:
Associate Professe", Chief of Radiology Section, finiversity of Illinois, College of Veterinary Medicine.
Henry H. Koertge, Director, Division of Environmental Health and Safety 4
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Albert J. Machiels, Assistant Professor of Nuclear Engineering j
1966 - University of Liege, Belgium, Chemical Engineering and Metallurgy 1969 - University of Liege, Belgium, Nuclear Engineering 1971 - University of California, Berkely, M.S., Nuclear Engineering 1976 - University of California, Berkely, Ph.D., Nuculear kEngineering 1966 - 1968:
Assistant, Chaire de Chimie Physique, University of Liege, Belgium 1970:
Assistant (on leave), EURO CHEMIC, Reprocessing Plant, Mol, Belgium 1969 _ 1971:
Av.istant, % :iro < o Ntmeriaux Nucleaires, University of
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Liege, Belgium 1971 - 1975: Research Assistant, Materials and Molecular Research Division, Lawlrence-Berkely Laboratory 1976:
Junior Spe'cialist 1, Department of Nuclear Engineerina, University of Collf ornia, Herkely 1979 - 1980:
Visiting Assistant Professor and Research Engineer, Department of Nuclear Engineering, University of California, Berkely 1976 to present: Assistant Professor of Nuclear Engineering, University of Illinois, Urbana, Ill.
Hector Mandel, Radiation Safety Officer 1972 - University.f Illinois at Urbana / Champaign, B.S.
Astronomy / Physics 1974 - University of Illinois at Urbana / Champaign, M.S. Nuclear Engineering / Health Physics 1974 _ 1975: Nuclear Engineer at Dresden Nuclear Power Station, Connonwealth Edison Company 197S. 1976: Assistant Health Physicist at Quad Cities Nuclear Power Station, Commonwealth Edison Company 1976 - 1977: Lead Health Physicist at LaSalle Nuclear Power Station, Commonwealth Edison Company i
l 1977 - 1978: Reactor Health Physicist at University of Illinois Advanced TRIGA reactor facility, University of Illinois at Urbana / Champaign 1978 - present: Head, Health Physics Section/ Radiation Safety Officer, Division of Environmentt.. Health and Safety, University of Illinois at Urbana / Champaign Steven H. Soboroff, Director, McKinley Health Center f
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For the most part, the Radiation Hazards Committee delegates the responsibility of determining user's qualifications to the Radiation Safety 0fficer.
During the process of considering any given user's Application for Radioisotope Procurement, the Radiation Safety Officer uses professional judgment in determining the qualifications of the user. Usually, the review process will involve discussions between the user and the RSO, or the user may be requested to answer selected questions in detail. If the RSO feels that the potential hazards warrant exhaustive review, the Application for Radioisotope Procurement is turned over to the Radiation Hazards Committee.
Once approval has been obtained, the user is carefully monitored through routine surveys and spot inspections by the 4ealth Physics Staff.
If, at any time, the RSO should feel that the qualifications nf the user to work with radioactive material are questionable, the matter is brought before the Radiation Hazards Committee for review.
The type of training required for personnel involved with radiation sources is generally left to the discretion of the laboratory supervisor.
To describe the training would be impractical since it will' vary so greatly from one situation to another so as to require a separate description for each individual worker.
The best (although inadequate and inaccurate) description is "on the job training." It can range from the simple instruction to a janitor:
" Don't empty radioactive trash cans into the Dempster Dumpster," to the gost elaborate list of prerequisite formal courses chosen from the multitude listed in the undergraduate and graduate course catalogues that might be rcquired for a Ph.D. candidate in Physiology preparing to use a multjcurie gamma irradiator to expose swine infected with flu viruses infused with tritium-tabelled DNA.
Certainly there are available many formal courses as indicated in the attached list gleaned from the UIUC catalogues. As you can see these are scattered throughout the various curriculi running the alphabet from Animal Science through Veterinary Medicine.
The Health Physics staff is essentially a service, consulting and liaison unit. The Health Physics Staff does try to supplement the efforts of the laboratory supervisors as much as possible.
In certain cases a Health
. Physics' staff member will perform a detailed survellance and evaluaton of a I
particular procedure, monitoring it in the lab from start to finish and 1
offering on-the-spot counselling as the procedure continues.
The decision to i
do this is made either when a p3rticular project is approved or when a particular shipment is delivered.
It is done whenever a new pr.oposed project
, appears to involve above-normal potential hazards or when a new group begins using precedurues and materials with which others have had difficulties in the past.
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J For janitors, maintenance personnel, etc., there is a brief dissertation, " Radiation Information," on Pages 107 and 110 of the Building Operations Manual which is issued to new building service workers.
All of our radiation protection procedures as well as descriptions of the responsibilities of the Radiation Safety Officer and the laboratory supervisors remain basically unchanged from those described in the UIUC Radiation Safety Manual, a copy of which you have on file. At the present time, a revised version of the UIUC Radiation Safety Manual is being circulated among the Radiation Hazards Committee members in draft form. All of the changes being conterrplated are procedural in nature,and do not involve changes in any license conditions.
It is our understanding that the types of changes being made will not require prior notification or review by the NRC since they involve changes dictated by NRC rule changes, changes in internal management forms or specific dates, changes in contractors for waste disposal, and mainly cosmetic changes in the format of the UlUC Radiation Safety Manual.
Courses Related to the Radiation Safety Program Animal Science 463 - Radioisotopes in Biological Research: Principles and Practice Biophysics 312 - Introduction to Radiobiology Biophysics 415 - Radiation Biophysics Biophysics 463 - Radioisotopes in Biological Research Chemistry 397 - Radiochemistry Chemistr 398 - Radiochemistry Laboratory Chemistry 496 - The Use of Carbon-14 Labelling Techniques Mechanical Eng. 302 - Nuclear Power Engineering Nuclear Eng. 241 -Introduction to Radiation Protection Nuclear Eng. 243 - Radiation Protection Laboratory Nuclear Eng. 341 - Principles of Radiation Protection Nuclear Eng. 347 - Introduction to Nuclear Engineering Nuclear Eng. 357 - Nuclear Reactor Safeguards Nuclear Eng. 397 - Radiochemistry Nuclear Eng. 398 - Radiochemistry Laboratory 7
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Nuclcar Eng. 421 - Nuclear Concepts Nuclear Eng. 441 - Nuclear Radiation Shielding Nuclear Eng. 451 - Nuclear Reactor Laboratory Nuclear Eng. 454 - Nuclear Engineering Laboratory Investigations Nuclear Eng. 458 -Nuclear Design Engineering Nuclear Eng. 490 -Special Topics in Nuclear Engineering Physics 470 - Introdcution to Nuclear and Particle Physics Physics 471 - Nuclear Physics I Physiology 331 - General Radiobiology Veterinary Biosciences 367 - Radiology and Radiobiology
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5.
Description of Equipment, Facilities, and instrumentation The Departments of Nuclear Engineering, Chemistry, and Physics (presently the only users of this material) have the necessary filtered hoods 235 c'r dry-boxes to safely handle the fabrication.of U sources.
No other
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departments will be authorized to use these sources unless they can demonstrate the adequacy of their procedures, equipment and facilities to the the Health Physics staff.
Most of these materials are presently stored in a locked cage at the Nuclear Reactor Laboratory. The Pu-Be sources are stored in their original shipping containers (55 gallon Parafin-filled drums) in Room 103 of the Nuclear Engineering Laboratory when not in use except one Pu-Be source whicn 4
is stored in the radiochemistry lab _ Room 18, Noyes Laboratory.
5.1 Radiation Detection Instruments The following is a list of radiation detection instruments which are available for use by the Health Physics Section:
Radiation Survey Instruments - 4 Geiger-Meuller instruments 4 lonization Chamber instruments 1 Neutron Survey instrument Special Detectors and probes - 1 1.ow-Energy gamma Nal detector Air Sampling Equipment
- 1 Low-Volume Air Sampler 1High-VolumeAjrSampler 1 Tritium Air Monitor 8
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O Laboratory Instruments
- 1 Liquid Scintillation Counter 1 Gas-Flow Proportional Counte'r 1 Calibrated, Reference-class Exposure Meter 5.2 Calibration Portable garuma and r.eutron survey instruments will be calibrated when new, at six-month intervals thereafter, and after each instrument repair.
ram na instruments are calibrated by varying the distance from the 2M detector to a standardized 100 milligram Ra (NBS) source and by adjusting the instrument calibration control for the proper indication. Calibrations are performed up to 2 R/hr and at at least two points on each scale, one at about 20% of full scale and the other at about 80% of full scale.
Neutron monitoring instruments are calibrated by varying the distance from the detector to a calibrated five curie Pu-Re neutron + source.
The Health Physics staff calibrates survey instruments owned and used by other departments at their request and also cross-checks their instruments against the Health Physics instruments occasionally at the time of routir,a laboratory surveys.
6.
Radiation Protection Program Our radiation protection program is probably best illustrated by our Radiation Safety Manual (a copy of which is provided to all who apply for the privilege of using radioisotopes on this campus). The most recent revision of the Manual is in your files.
As indicated on page 35 of the Radiation Safety Manual, the Radiation Hazards Committee has been placed administrative 1y under the jurisdiction of the Office of the Chancellor. Actually it reports directly to and is appointed by the Vice Chancellor for Administrative Affairs. The Health Physics Office is administratively and budgetarily a sub-unit of the Division of Environmental Health and Safety which reports to the same Vice Chancellor.
The Committee usually meets formally only once or twice a year to review the work of the Health Physics staff and to consider modifications of policies. However, the members are available individually or collectively at any time to offer advice and to aid in determining the proper course of action whenever new or unusual situations arise. Sometimes, in such cases, a special meeting of the whole committee will be called. Sometimes, a subcommittee will be formed of members with expertise bearing on, a particular problem. Otherwise, the authority of the Committee is delegated to the Health Physics staff who perform the Health Physics functions, leak test sealed sources, maintain the radioisotope and radiation safety records, and,
submit written reports the the Committee.
6.1 Film Badges
n n
Q Film badges (heta, gamma, neutron and finger hadqcs) are obtained from on,e of the commercial suppliers of this service. At the present time, the
. contract for this service at the UIUC is held by R.S. Landauer, Jr. & Co.,
Division of Tech /0ps., Inc., Glenwood Science Park, Glenwood, II. 60425.
6.2 Radiation Survey Program On rare occasions when a 2350 source is being fabricated, (always in a filtered hood or a dry-box) the person responsible will survey himself and the area frequently during fabrication and will clean up the area afterwards.
Otherwise there will be no routine survey program other than leak testing the sealed sources. Discovery of a leaking source would of course prompt a non-routine survey of the area. Leak tests will be done by a member of the Health Physics staff at 3-month intervals for alpha-emitting sources and at six-month intervals for others. However, sources " contained" in sealert equipment will not be removed from the equipment for leak testing unless there is evidence of leakage outside the equipment. Leaking sources will be repaired or withdrawn from use.
Leak testing will consist of wiping the source and the inside of its container with a Q-tip or filter paper or equivalent material either dry or moistened with water or other non-corrosive solvent.
(Except: fragile alpha windows will not be wiped). The wipe samples will be counted in a gas-proportional flow counter.
6.3 Waste Disposal There'should be no waste from the Pu-Be sources or the 2330 or 239,
p Waste from the (rare) fabrication of 2350 sources and counters is expected to 235 be minimal a; in the past. Waste from the 0 used in the Nuclear-Pumped Laser research will be returned to the vendor. Small quantities of of liquid waste can safely be washed down the sewer. (This institution has a sewage flow of more than two million gallons per day.)
6.4 Record Manaqement and Material Control Records of receipt, use, location and disposal of material, personnel monitoring surveys, etc., are maintained in steel filing cabinets in the Health Physics Office. Appendix I of the UIUC Radiation Safety Manual describes pro;edures for " Purchase, Aquisition, and Transfer of Radioactive Materials."
6.5 Routine and Emergency Procedures Routine laboratory procedures and emergency procedures are outlined in the UIUC Radiation Safety Manual.
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