Water level gauge using neutron source

Abstract

Abstract A RADIOACTIVE SOURCE OF ENERGY EMITING NEUTRONS IS PLACED ADJACENT A SUNKEN HULL AND NEUTRONS PASS RELATIVELY UNIMPEDED THROUGH THE STEEL HULL AND, IF INCLUDED, AN INTERNAL THERMAL INSULATOR TO A COMPARTMENT INTERIOR. IF THE COMPARTMENT IS UNFLOODED, MOST NEUTRONS CONTINUE ON THEIR WAY, BUT IF THE INTERIOR IS FILLED WITH WATER, A GREAT MANY OF THE NEUTRONS ARE PARTIALLY BACKSCATTERED AS THEY ENCOUNTER THE WATER MEDIUM WITH A PERCENTAGE OF THE BACKSCATTERED NEUTRONS IMPINGING ON A PARTICLE DETECTOR. THE PARTICLE DETECTOR PRODUCES SIGNALS REPRESENTATIVE OF THE BACKSCATTER INTENSITY TO AN INDICATOR WHICH PROVIDES AN INDICATION TO A DIVER AS TO WHETHER OR NOT A COMPARTMENT IS FLOODED. BY RELOCATING THE INVENTION ALONG THE VERTICAL DIMENSION OF THE COMPARTMENT AND NOTING WHERE THERE IS AN INSIGNIFICANT LEVEL OF BACK-SCATTERING, THE LEVEL TO WHICH THE CHAMBER IS FLOODED IS DETERMINED FROM THE VESSEL''S EXTERIOR. D R A W I N G

Inventors

• 👤 B Olesen

Bibliographic Details