Radiation experiments with hydrogen-containing materials on the URAM-2 cryogenic irradiation facility at the IBR-2 reactor

The URAM-2 irradiation system facility at the IBR-2 reactor is described. The results of experiments performed with this facility to study the behavior of water ice, solid methane, aromatic hydrocarbons, and other materials exposed to fast neutrons and rays are presented. The rate of energy accumulation in these materials under irradiation and the amount of accumulated hydrogen and the temperature at which the hydrogen leaves the material matrices are determined. Recommendations are made for the working temperature of these materials for use in cold neutron moderators.Translated from Atomnaya Énergiya, Vol. 97, No. 3, pp. 183–189, September, 2004.