Award Date

1-1-2006

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Mechanical Engineering

First Committee Member

William Culbreth

Number of Pages

89

Abstract

A dense-plasma focus device or DPF creates a very dense focus point of plasma with temperatures high enough to induce fusion reactions. One such device currently located in Las Vegas is scheduled for relocation to the Nevada Test Site. At the Test Site the device will be fired with deuterium and tritium (D-T) fusion resulting in a yield of about 1013 fusion neutrons of 14 MeV. This poses a radiological hazard to scientists and personnel operating the device. The goal of this project was to evaluate various shielding options under consideration for the DPF operating with D-T fusion. Shields of varying neutron-shielding effectiveness were investigated using concrete, dirt, polyethylene, paraffin and borated materials. The most effective shield, a labyrinth structure, allowed almost 2000 shots per year while keeping personnel under 100 mrem of dose. The most cost effective shield that used an existing pit allowed about 350 shots per year.

Keywords

Analysis; Dense; Dose; Focus; Neutron; Plasma; Radiation; Shielding; Sources

Controlled Subject

Nuclear engineering; Radiation =650 Nuclear physics

File Format

pdf

File Size

3102.72 KB

Degree Grantor

University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Language

English

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