Abstract
The reactor core is the primary source of the radionuclides encountered at LWR’s whether they are fission products or activation products. Radiation is produced when the fissile nuclides U-235 and later in core life, Pu-239 fission. The fission process produces neutrons, beta particles and gamma radiations directly along with radioactive fission products. Along with the two fission products, two to three neutrons are also emitted in addition to the energy given off during the process. The fission products consist of numerous radionuclides many of which emit beta and gamma radiations. In addition to neutrons posing a direct radiation hazard when the reactor is critical, they also produce radionuclides by means of neutron activation.
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© 2012 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
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Prince, R. (2012). Sources of Occupational Radiation Exposure. In: Radiation Protection at Light Water Reactors. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-28388-8_4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-28388-8_4
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