Comparison of Scintillation Detection Efficiencies of Depleted Uranium in Wounds.
Abstract
Depleted uranium (DU) has been used to reinforce military equipment and weapon systems due to its high density and metallurgical properties. During Desert Shield/Storm, some soldiers were wounded by fragments of depleted uranium metal which became imbedded in various locations in their bodies. The Army Radiation Research Office in Fort Belvoir, Virginia, requested assistance from Colorado State University in finding a portable and easily operated system for detecting depleted uranium in wounds. In a first step towards finding that detection system, a comparison of the relative efficiencies of three types of scintillation detectors was conducted. Tissue-equivalent cylindrical wound phantoms with varying activities of depleted uranium metal imbedded at varying depths were used to compare the efficiencies of a bismuth germanate (BGO) detector, a sodium iodide (Nal), and two identical wound probes with smaller sodium iodide crystals. The results show that the BGO detector had the highest efficiency (1.0 x 10(-3)) and the lowest lower limit of detection (LLD) (0.156 Micro Ci) for the shallow depth phantom. The BGO detector also had the highest efficiencies (1.7 x 10(-3) and 5.8 x 10(-4)) and the lowest LLDs (0.094 Micro Ci and 0.276 Micro Ci) for the medium and deep phantoms, respectively.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- May 01, 1997
- Accession Number
- ADA325843
Entities
People
- Shelley Zuehike
Organizations
- Air Force Institute of Technology