Cyclotron-based neutron irradiation facility for BNCT experimental applications

C.Ceballos ¹², J. Esposito¹, E. Fagotti¹, P.Colautti¹, D. Moro¹³,

A. Pisent¹, P. Panichelli4, G. Valentini4.

1) INFN, Laboratori Nazionali di Legnaro, Viale dell’Università 2, I-35020 Legnaro, PD, Italy.

2) Centro de Aplicaciones Tecnlógicas y Desarrollo Nuclear, 5ta y 30, Miramar, Playa, Ciudad Habana, Cuba.

3) Dipartimento di fisica dell’Università di Padova, via Marzolo 8, I-35131 Padova, Italy

4) ACOM spa. Montecosaro Scalo, I-62010, MC, Italy.

A design of an irradiation facility to be used for Boron Neutron Capture Therapy (BNCT) experimental trials on cell cultures and small animals, using an accelerator-based neutron source is developed. The neutron converter is based on a cyclotron-produced deuteron beam (9 MeV, 40 µA) impinging on a beryllium target. The cyclotron considered here, is already used for the production of radioactive isotopes, devoted to medical applications. The design includes the deuteron beam transport line, the beryllium target, the neutron beam shaping assembly, and finally the irradiation room. The characterizations of the therapeutic beam and the dosimetric calculations outside the irradiation room have been performed by means of MCNPX transport code using in-air figure of merits. The study reveled that, even using a low power accelerator (0.36 kW), a thermal flux level of the order of 108 cm-2s-1, having a thermal-to-total neutron flux ratio of 0.92 is achieved.

Acom Group