Industrial application of e-beam accelerators in Korea

Electron Accelerators are the most common means of radiation processing, and they are used in diverse industries to enhance the physical and the chemical properties of materials and to reduce undesirable contaminants, such as pathogens or toxic by-products of materials. Fifteen thousand [1,500] electron accelerators are commercially used in the world, and this number is eight or nine times greater than the number of Gamma irradiation facilities. Electron accelerators are reliable and durable electrically-sourced equipment that can produce ionizing radiation when it is needed for a particular commercial use. Electron accelerators were introduced in Korea during the 1970s, firstly for research and later for insulated wire and cable production. At present, over sixty electron accelerators are in commercial use, providing several billion USD annually in Korean industries, mainly for purposes such as, productions of wires, cables, thermo-shrinkable materials, foam sheets, and coating, curing of materials, sterilization of medical products, environmental protection, and others. With the increasing needs in the automobile and electronics industries, applicable areas for electron accelerator will be extended greatly in the future.