Investigating Localized Fallout from the Detonation of a Nuclear Charge

Authors

  • Joel Michael Smith

Abstract

The use of a nuclear charge for a non-military purpose is referred to as a Peaceful Nuclear Explosion (PNE), the following paper investigated the potential uses of PNE’s in civil engineering applications due to their high explosive yield to weight ratios. The investigation carried out looked at the behaviour of the neutron flux from a 100kt nuclear fission charge in soil, primarily focusing on radiation resulting from the neutron activation of soil. The calculated radiation fields present one year after the subterranean detonation of a 100kt warhead were found to be four orders of magnitude greater than the annual radiation background levels in Canada. The effect of this would cause workers one kilometre from the blast site to exceed Canadian Nuclear Safety Committee (CNSC) standards for absorbed dose within one working week. It can therefore be concluded that because of the time it takes for radiation levels to decay down to CNSC standards, PNE’s are not suitable for civil engineering applications within Canada.

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Vol. 1 No. 1 (2017)

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Published

2017-08-22

Issue

Vol. 1 No. 1 (2017): The McMaster Journal of Engineering Physics

Section

Articles

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