NON-INVASIVE IN-SITU IMAGING OF INTERIOR OF NUCLEAR REACTORS

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide techniques, systems and devices for non-invasive monitoring and imaging of a reactor core inside a nuclear reactor using muon detector arrays.SOLUTION: A method is configured to: place a first muon detector array 106 that is vertically configured along a vertical plane substantially parallel to a first wall of an enclosure on a first side of the enclosure 104 of a nuclear reactor; place a second muon detector array 108 that is configured vertically along a vertical plane substantially parallel to a second wall of the enclosure on a second side of the enclosure opposite to the first side; collect a hit signal representing a cosmic-ray muon passing through the nuclear reactor, and each of the first and second muon detector arrays from both of the first and second muon detectors; process the collected hit signal to generate an image of a reactor core including an image of a nuclear fuel; and determine a location of the nuclear fuel 103 in the reactor core 102 and a state of the reactor core on the basis of the image of the nuclear fuel. 【課題】ミュー粒子検出器アレイを用いた、原子炉内の炉心の非侵略的監視及びイメージングのための技術、システム及びデバイスを提供する。【解決手段】原子炉の囲い１０４の第１の側に、囲いの第１の壁に実質的に平行な垂直平面に沿って垂直に構成された第１のミュー粒子検出器アレイ１０６を配置し、第１の側の反対側である囲いの第２の側に、囲いの第２の壁に実質的に平行な垂直平面に沿って垂直に構成された第２のミュー粒子検出器アレイ１０８を配置し、第１及び第２のミュー粒子検出器の両方から、原子炉及び第１及び第２のミュー粒子アレイのそれぞれを通過する宇宙線ミュー粒子を表すヒット信号を収集し、収集したヒット信号を処理して、核燃料の画像を含む炉心の画像を生成し、核燃料の画像に基づいて、炉心１０２内の核燃料１０３の位置及び炉心の状態を判定する。【選択図】図１Ａ