ML20236L890
| ML20236L890 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | 07002166 |
| Issue date: | 12/09/1975 |
| From: | Oreskovicj D INLAND STEEL MINING CO. |
| To: | NRC |
| Shared Package | |
| ML20236L784 | List: |
| References | |
| 2393, NUDOCS 8708100395 | |
| Download: ML20236L890 (8) | |
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MINORCA MINE.
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Safety and Safeguards
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Gentlemen:
Attached is information submitted to support our request for the issuance of a Special Nuclear Materials License authorizing Inland Steel Mining Company, Minorca Mine, Virginia, Minnesota, ownership, acquisition and utilization of the described Plutonium sources subject to the proposed conditions.
Identical units have been previously ifcensed by USNRC for Hanna Mining Company, Jackson County Iron Company, and Hibbing Taconite.
We have also attached a check for $50.00 to cover the license fee.
Very truly yours,
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.Y D. M. Oreskovich p
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'O' APPLICATION FOR RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS LICENSE l
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Inland Steel Mining Company i
Minorca Mine P. O. Box 1 Virginia, Minnesota 55792 i
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The following information is submitted in support of our request for the l
issuance of a Radioactive Materials License to possess and utilize the instru-l ment described.
1.
Name and address of applicant:
Inland Steel Mining Company Minorca Mine P. O. Box 1 Virginia, Minnesota 55792 i
President:
Mr. Carl B. Jacobs Inland Steel Company (Parent Co.)
l 30 West Monroe Street Chicago, Illinois 60603 Vice President:
Mr. Howard M. Graff Inland Steel Company 30 West Monroe Street Chicago, Illinois 60603 l
Vice President:
Mr. Peter P. Ribotto Inland Steel Mining Company P. O. Box 1001 Virginia, Minnesota -55792 2.
Location at which the device will'be housed and used:
Inland Steel Mining Company Minorca Mine Quality Control Laboratory Wouri Township Virginia, Minnesota 55792 3.
Names of persons who will be responsible for the instrument, the control of nuclear material and the records:
a.
Vern E. Metzger, Plant Superintendent B.S. Degree - Mining Engineering l
Nineteen (19) years of engineering and supervisory experience I
since graduation.
b.
David M. Oreskovich, Mining Engineer B.S. Degree - Civil Engineering Two (2) years of engineering and supervisory experience since graduation.
c.
Chuck Porter - Electrician Supervisor for seven (7) years. Has been responsible for similar nuclear device at Jackson County Iron Company for the last two years.
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4.
The plutonium source will be used as an integral part of a neutron activation analysis system supplied to Inland Steel Mining Company, Minorca Mine, by Texas Nuclear Corporation, 9101 Highway 183, Austin, 1
Texas 78758. The purpose of this system will be to measure the silicon l
content of various samples.
5.
The basic system is schematically shown on the following drawing titled NALA ANALYZER. The NALA Batch Analyzer consists of two main components, the source holder-shield and the electronics cabinet. The unit is composed of a 238-Pu-Be neutron source, sample positioner, neutron i
detector, and personnel shielding. The electronics cabinet contains a NaI(T1) detector, power supplies, signal handling modules, and control circuits.
1 A sample is placed in the irradiator for activation by manually sliding the sample holder (See NALA ACTIVATOR Drawing HMC-D-1047) to a position just outside the shield. Shielding material in the sample tray reduces to acceptable levels the operator exposure during this period.
The sample is placed in the sample receptacle (20), and the entire assembly is positioned back into the shield until the sample is directly over the source.
When the sample is in the proper position, a microswitch is closed which actuates the activation timer-.
After a predetermined period of time, the operator is signaled that activation is complete, and the sample is transferred to the detector for measurement of the induced radioactivity.
This transfer operation is accomplished within a period of about five seconds. The activation analysis is accomplished by using a 3" x 3" NaI(TI) crystal to count the gamma rays of intere.t from the activation product.
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6.
The sealed source to be utilized is a Plutonium 238-Bery111um neutron
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emitter.
It contains approximately 0.5 grams of Plutonium-238 as an j
oxide with Beryllium. The neutron emission rate of the source is 2.0 x 107 n/sec. The source was fabricated to the specifications shown on the drawing numbered HMC-A-1049 by Monsanto Research Corporation. With the void volume provided, there can be no significant Helium build-up over the next 20 years under normal conditions of use.
7.
The system will be utilized in the Quality Control Laboratory at the Inland Steel Mining Company, Minorca Mine. This area is "Off Limits" to all except Laboratory Personnel, Maintenance people as required, and Supervisors.
The area in which the system is used and stored will not be controlled as a " Radiation Area" because the radiation levels outside the shield are less then 2.0 mrem / hour.
The principal items of concern from a radiological safety standpoint in the utilization of this system are:
a.
Exposure to radiation outside the shield under normal operating conditions.
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Failure of the source capsule inside the shield, c.
Exposure to radiation under emergency conditions.
d.
Disposal of the activated materials.
Radiation exposure rates to be expected outside the shield are shown on the drawing titled "NALA ACTIVATOR". Confirmation of these radiation levels will be furnished by Texas Nuclear at the time the instrument is installed.
The construction of the shield is detailed on the drawing referenced above.
The source cannot be removed without disassembly of the primary shield, and the cover plate will be provided with a lock to insure that only authorized personnel have access to the erradiator. The source itself is shielded as shown, with lead, water-extended polyester and water.
As usual, the shield is massive and the exposure rates are very low due mainly to the high sensitivity of the system detector rather than personnel exposure considerations. There is no reason to believe that personnel operating the system under normal conditions of usage will receive whole-body exposures approaching 0.50 rem / year and, therefore, addit'ional personnel monitoring will not be utilized.
Failure of.the source encapsulation, especially inside the shield, is remote at best. This type of capsule construction has been used for some time with no known failures.
It should be noted that a failure of the source would change the optimized irradiation geometry and this would.
immediately be reflected in the system response.
We propose to leak test this source using the leak test procedure entitled
" Leak Test Procedure for NALA" recommended and supplied as a mailable kit by Texas Nuclear. This procedure' requires no disassembly of the unit. We will test at least once every six months under normal conditions, and at any other times the operational data leads us to suspect that some source abnormality may have occurred.
In the event the leak test is positive, we will discontinue use of the system, secure the room and await further instructions from Texas Nuclear and/or the U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. We believe that even a ruptured source could be safely contained for some time in the shield with little probability that contamination would be a hazard outside the container.
The physical location of the sample room, the building construction and general house-keeping conditions make it unlikely that conditions could exist which would endanger the shielding properties of the primary container. Although we cannot envision the accident, if such occurred, we would attempt to climinate personnel from the area of the source, notify the U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission and Texas Nuclear Health Physics, and. await instructions or the arrival of trained personnel to evaluate the situation.
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. l There is only vtry low-level radioactive waste generated in this system.
l In operation, a small, approximately 250 gm, sample is activated, analyzed and then stored for future reference. These samples contain as major components typically Fe2 3, and SiO.
Experimentally, it has been 0
2 determined that the 28Si(n,p)28A1 is one of the most prominent reactions.
Taking for example, 25 gm. SiO ; irradiation for 5 minutes, and a detection 2
efficiency of 2%, one can calculate that there is about 0.09 uCi of 28A1 in the sample cup during the counting period. With the 2.3 minute half-life, this decays to a very low level in a short period of time. Many of the other reactions have comparable cross-sections, but will produce much i
less radioactive material because their half-lives are long compared to the irradiation time and therefore, the saturation factor is much smaller.
We conclude that no significant hazard exists, either to employees or the general public, in the routine handling of the amounts of. radioactive material produced in this system, their temporary stortge, or ultimate disposal.
We, therefore, propose that routine monitoring or sampling is not necessary to insure personnel safety and will not be included as part of our l
safety program.
i The following additional features of our program for the protection of health and property:
(a)
In the event the use of the system is discontinued, the removal and disposal of the radioactive material will be handled by Texas Nuclear.
(b)
Inland Steel personnel will'not remcve the source from the primary shield.
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