NE 504 Radiation Safety and Shielding
3 Credit Hours
Radiation sources commonly encountered in nuclear applications; attenuation of gamma rays and neutrons; simplified methods for radiation transport including point kernel methods and uncollided dose; definitions of dose quantities and response functions; buildup factors and methods for dose computation.
Prerequisite
NE 301 Fundamentals of Nuclear Engineering (C or better), or NE 419 Introduction to Nuclear Engineering, or instructor pre-approval.
Course Objectives
First the student is introduced to the fundamental concepts and quantities used to characterize radiation fields. The remainder of the course covers the three components comprising a typical shielding design/analysis problem:
- Common radiation sources: their strength and spectral characteristics;
- Dose calculation: quantifying the effect of radiation on the target material;
- Radiation transport: simple methods including point-kernel, buildup factors, and geometric factors.
Course Requirements
Homework Assignments* 25%
Quizzes 25%
Midterm 25%
Final Exam 25%
* Late Homework Policy: Up to one week past due date: Grade reduced by 50%
No credit for homework submitted more than one week past the due date
Textbook
J. Kenneth Shultis and Richard E. Faw, Radiation Shielding, American Nuclear Society (2000)