Non-destructive nuclear measurement in the fuel cycle. Part 1

The development of non-destructive measurement techniques for the control, characterization and analysis of radioactive materials began with the birth of nuclear science and technology. Indeed, the property of a material, known as nuclear, to emit, in the majority of cases, characteristic spontaneous or induced radiation, made its detection and quantification, via some of its emissions, a natural approach.

However, the establishment and use of non-destructive measurement methods remained limited until the 1960s, when the nuclear industry began to take off.

The control, monitoring and follow-up of both radioactive materials and the proper operation of nuclear facilities have proved essential and primordial for the main nations concerned.

This is how non-destructive characterization techniques got their first real boost, and have been constantly improved and adapted ever since.

Non-destructive nuclear measurement is now widely used in virtually every stage of the fuel cycle. Therefore, before discussing these methods, their classification and description, we thought it would be useful to devote a paragraph to a brief presentation of the main stages in the French nuclear fuel cycle. This will give a clearer idea of the issues involved in control and characterization.

Finally, non-destructive nuclear measurements are now used in a wide range of sectors (dating, climatology, medicine, etc.). These aspects, covered in other books in the series, are not dealt with in this article. These include their use in environmental monitoring. and for nuclear process control .

This first part, dedicated to the presentation of inspection and characterization issues and the main passive non-destructive nuclear measurement methods, is completed by a second part. dedicated to active non-destructive nuclear measurement techniques.