Neutron Activation ● Nuclear ● Reactors
Cornelia Chilian is a researcher and Director of the SLOWPOKE Neutron Activation Analysis Laboratory.
Possessing significant expertise in nuclear energy, her lab is a one-of-a-kind facility at Polytechnique.
(514) 340-4711 extension 4780
One-of-a-kind facility and expertise
The SLOWPOKE lab houses a nuclear reactor fuelled by uranium enriched to 20% U-235. The reactor is used by researchers to develop activation neutron activation analysis (NAA) methods, including k0-NAA, a method of chemical analysis used to measure the concentrations of elements in solids and liquids. Dr. Chilian has designed a method of iterative correction of resonance self-shielding for samples of unknown composition with high concentrations of neutron-absorbing elements. This is a world first in the field of NAA, and now allows researchers at the Laboratory to analyze exotic matrices in advanced composite materials. Research work is ongoing, with the goal of coupling all of the models, such as the new model of detection efficiency that involves gamma attenuation by matrices containing heavy elements such as the rare earths.
With a keen interest in NAA applications of nuclear and atomic data and in radiation detection instrumentation, Dr. Chilian has upgraded and automated her laboratory’s irradiation and gamma-ray spectrometry equipment and methods. These advances have considerably enhanced the accuracy of the NAA method used at Polytechnique Montréal, which has had a direct impact on the volume of analysis requests. The Lab now analyzes more than 10,000 samples per year for applications in fields of industrial, mining, environmental, agricultural and human-health technology research. University-industry collaborations make up an important part of its operations and revenue.
The June 2013 renewal by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission of the operating licence for the SLOWPOKE research reactor required radical changes to the reactor’s management. Dr. Chilian drew on expertise acquired at Canada’s Chalk River Laboratories to author and implement a series of new regulatory programs including the quality assurance program, reactor operator training program, reactor aging management, preliminary decommissioning plan, etc. That expertise is in addition to the others available from the Neutron Activation Analysis Laboratory.
Close collaboration with outside interests
Dr. Chilian applies her nuclear engineering expertise and training to ensure judicious operation of research reactors. She is a collaborator on international projects involving research reactor fuel conversion, NAA automization as well as evaluation of nuclear data, certified materials, and quality standards. The Laboratory produces radioactive tracers and provides technical support and training in NAA. It also provides consulting services on regulatory and management aspects of research reactors, along with nuclear instrumentation calibration and assistance services. The Polytechnique SLOWPOKE NAA Laboratory is today among the world’s leading NAA laboratories, recognized by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in Vienna as well as the International Committee on Activation Analysis (ICAA).
