Date of Award
3-2021
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science
Department
Department of Engineering Physics
First Advisor
Gaiven Varshney, PhD
Abstract
Accidents involving nuclear weapons, such as the Boeing Michigan Aeronautical Research Center (BOMARC) accident in 1960, always pose a significant risk of allowing particles composed of nuclear materials to enter the environment. These particles often differ in characteristics and can be of greatly varying sizes. Gamma ray analysis was conducted on the soil sample and radioisotopes within the sample were identified. Two non-destructive methods for locating actinide bearing particles within the sample were testing, resulting in 70 actinide bearing particles ranging from 1-34 microns being identified. These 70 particles underwent both morphological and elemental characterization, indicating uranium and other elements.
AFIT Designator
AFIT-ENP-MS-21-M-121
DTIC Accession Number
AD1145710
Recommended Citation
Heffelfinger, Aaron J., "Characterization and Analysis of BOMARC Accident Debris" (2021). Theses and Dissertations. 5019.
https://scholar.afit.edu/etd/5019