28

FREILING, CROCKER, AND ADAMS

simply. Similarly, a response curve for an instrument can be substituted. We have calculated the response ofthe NRDL 47 ionization cham-

ber,*! by using the response curves of Report USNRDL-TR-155.
Results

A forthcoming USNRDL technical report will list the predicted
radiological properties of unfractionated debris for seven important

cases:

2351), thermal neutrons
2351) fission-spectrum neutrons
35) high-energy neutrons
2331) fission-spectrum neutrons
*39Du, fission-spectrum neutrons
2381] fission-spectrum neutrons
2381] thermonuclear neutrons
Twenty-nine time points, ranging from 1 hr to 70 years, were
requested from the computer. The output for 24 hr is analyzed to pro-

duce gamma-photon emission spectra from 0 to 4.0 Mev in 0.100-Mev
increments. At each time point total disintegration rates and dose rates,
together with individual nuclide contributions (when these amount to 1%

or more of the total), are itemized. In addition, total ionization currents and individual nuclide contributions are listed for thermal neutron
fission of *UY. The output is far too voluminous to give more than a
sample here. We will therefore restrict further discussion to the most

important case, that of 7°°U fission with a thermonuclear neutron spec-

trum.
The total activity in disintegrations per second is shown in Fig. 10.

The individual activities have been plotted in Fig. 11 as relative values

(percents of total activity) against time in the manner of Hunter and
Ballou.
Two points are worth mentioning here about the effect of neutron

energy on the activities after 1 hr. The nuclides ‘Sb and '’Te, which

do not appear for *u thermal fission, do appear in the present case.

This is due to an increase in chain yield. Note that relative-activity
curves for several nuclides in the hours and days ranges have been

omitted from Fig. 11 in the interest of legibility.
The gamma-photon spectra at 6 hr, 7 days, and 270 days are shown
in Fig. 12 as composite histograms. These show general order of
magnitude agreement with Bjornerstedt’s predictions, *” but a detailed
reconciliation remains to be made.

Figure 13 shows the gross exposure-dose rate for gamma radiation at 3 ft above an infinite plane uniformly contaminated with 10! fis-

sions/cm’.

Select target paragraph3