Criterions for accelerators selection

on the bases of technical

performance and cost of operation

Zbigniew ZIMEK
Centre for Radiation Research and Technology
Institute of Nuclear Chemistry and Technology
Warsaw, Poland
This project has been funded with support from the
European Commission. This publication reflects the
views only of the author. Polish National Agency for
the Erasmus+ Programme and the European
Commission cannot be held responsible for any use
which may be made of the information contained
therein.

Date: Oct. 2017

 Content
1. Accelerators for radiation processing –
recent developments
2. Reliability and availability of accelerators
for radiation processing
3. Cost of accelerator facility operation
4. Criterions of accelerator selection
 1. Accelerators for radiation
processing – recent developments
 Accelerators type ILU (INP)

Parametrs ILU-6 ILU-8* ILU-10 ILU- ILU-14**

12**
Energy 0.5- 0.8-1 4-5 5 MeV 7.5 – 10
2.5 MeV MeV MeV
MeV
Beam 20 kW 20 kW 50 kW 100/300 100 kW
power kW
*Local shield with weight 76t
**Multi resonator system
Accelerator type
IŁU 10
5 MeV, 50 kW

1 – vacuum tank, 2 – copper toroidal cavity, 3 – magnetic lens,

4 – ion pumps, 5 – grid-cathode unit, 6 – outlet device, 7–
coupling loop support, 8 – vacuum capacitor, 9 – RF generators.
ILU 12

Resonator
sprzęgający
ILU 14
ILU 14 accelerator 10 MeV, 100 kW at
sterilization facility
Energy, MeV 10 7.5
Accelerating
structure 61 77
efficiency, %
Total efficiency, % 26 32
Accelerators type Rhodotron (IBA)
second generation
 Rhodotron: reduced power consumption

Reduction electrical energy

consumption for units with
40 kW beam power: 30 %

Assumptions:
Cost of electrical energy: 0.12 €/kWh
Exploitation: 6000 h/y
El. eff. Rhodotron I (30 kW, 10 MeV): 17%
El. eff. Rhodotron II (30 kW, 10 MeV): 25%
Cost of el. energy (I): 171 kEuro
Cost of el. energy (II): 105 kEuro
El. eff linac (30 kW, 10 MeV): 13%
Cost of el. energy (linak): 208 kEuro
 Rhodotron: modular construction
 Better accommodation for users needs,
 Higher reliability,
 Unified equipment
and spare parts MOD 3 Modular construction
MOD 2
MOD 1 MODULE 3
up 700 kW
MODULE 2
Up 450 kW
MODULE 1
40-200 kW

Power modules
Rhodotron: design and operation principles

Two sided irradiation

Fast
switching
magnet
Rhodotron: design and operation principles
X-ray

Parallel operation

Beam
t
EB
Exit 1
t

Exit 2
t
Rhodotron TT50: compact construction
Resonator diameter: 80 cm
Frequency: 352 MHz
Power losses: x1,8 vs TT200
Pulsed operation: 25 %
Electron energy: 10 MeV
M power: 10 kW
Electrical efficiency: 20 %
Accelerator 10 MeV, 40 kW, China
Compact CW linac for radiation technologies
Beam energy: 1 MeV
Beam current: 25 mA
Max. beam power: 25 kW Magnetic
screen
Dimensions: 0.5x0.9x1.4 m Klystron
Gun/klystron HV: 15 kV Accelerator
structure
Power consumption: ~75 kW with gun
Electrical efficiency: ~33%
Solenoid

Ion pump

CW multi-beam klystron KU-399A

High power microtron for radiation
processing
Electron energy 8 – 10 MeV
Pulse current 0.3 A
Pulse width 5 µs
Repetition rate 2000 Hz
Beam power 30 kW
Frequency 2856 MHz
Weight (main 800 kg
body)
Body size 40 x 60 cm

Photon Production Lab. Co Ltd

eFFAG – compact CW recirculating
electron accelerator
(Fixed-Field Alternating Gradient)

FFAGs
- Fixed magnetic fields like
Extraction cyclotron,
orbit - Separated components,
- Synchrotron-like dynamics.
Injection
orbit

Permanent magnets based on ceramic

ferrites: SmCo5 or NdFeB could be used.

50 keV to 9 MeV compact ring with injection

and extraction orbits. Outer radius <100 cm
eFFAG – compact CW recirculating
electron accelerator
(Fixed-Field Alternating Gradient)
Market case for compact CW effags
 Compact (<1 m diameter, transportable),
 High current: 1 – 2 mA,
 No power supplies for magnets,
 Inexpensive components.
 A single 100-200 keV cavity (as in cyclotron),
 45-90 acceleration turns,
 Duty cycle: 1ns/10 ns ~10%,
 Space charge limited to ~109 electrons/RF bunch
 For 100 MHz cavity (10 ns bunch spacing),
 Electron Energy: 9 MeV,
 Beam current: 1.6 mA,
 Average beam power: ~140 kW.
 Superconducting radio
frequency compact, high power,
electron linac 2-40 MeV, 100 kW
1. Electron gun
7
2. Superconducting
electron linac
3. Bending magnet
1 2 3
4. Scanning magnet
5. Output chamber
6
4 6. Microwave
power
5 7. Helium cryoplant
NIOWAVE Inc.
 Superconducting radio
frequency compact, high power,
electron linac

Electron Energy 0.5 – 40 MeV

Beam power 1 – 100 kW
Average beam current up to 2,5 mA
Frequency 350 MHz
Electron bunch length ≈5 ps
Electron gun voltage 100 kV
NIOWAVE Inc.
 2. Reliability and availability of
accelerators for radiation processing
The accelerator reliability may have direct
influence on economic and logistic features of
radiation facility.
The reliability issue was not the priority problem
in the past of radiation processing activity and
accelerators for radiation processing were not
primarily optimized with respect to reliability.
The importance of electron accelerators for
radiation processing reliability is growing up at
present.
Reliability at present is recognized as one of
accelerator selection criteria
 Definition
RELIABILITY:
PROBABILITY that a system can perform its
intended function for a specified time interval
under stated conditions.

 High reliability is required when repair of

sensitive sub-components are long (or difficult)
 Poor reliability may be acceptable, if each
failure can be repaired in a very short time so
the system has a high availability, and the
maintenance costs are reasonable.
Equipment or system reliability can not be
guaranteed.
 Definition
AVAILABILITY:
Fraction of TIME during which a system meets its
specification.
 High availability is required if continuous
service is the priority.
 Equipment should not work at full capacity, and
some margin must be allowed.
 When weak point is established a suitable
availability level can be achieved but it is a
matter of finance, manpower and time.

Reliability ≠ Availability
 Low availability
 Prototype accelerator construction (limited
exploitation experience),
 Parameters on the edge of present limits
(unproven working conditions),
 Components with limited life time (magnetron)
 Difficulties in spare parts availability (limited
access),
 Poor accelerator reliability (improper design,
poor service and maintenance).
 Definition
REDUNDANCY is the existence of more than
one means for accomplishing a given function.
It can be:

 ACTIVE: if all redundant items operate

simultaneously,
 STAND-BY: in the case where one or more
redundant items are activated solely upon
failure of the primary item performing the
function.
 Definitions
MEAN TIME BETWEEN FAILURE (MTBF)
The mean time during which all parts of a system perform
within their specified limits, during a given time interval.

MEAN DOWN TIME (MDT)

The average time when a system is unavailable due to a
failure. This time includes the actual repair time plus all
delays associated with the repair (finding the spare part, etc).

MEAN TIME TO REPAIR (MTTR)

The sum of corrective maintenance time divided by the total
number of failures during a given time interval.

Availability = MTBF / (MTBF + MTTR)

Failure frequency = Downtime / MTTR
 Critical points of reliability policy
 Complicated operational and servicing inter-
relationships;
 Poor briefing used;
 Inadequate budget to meet quality brief;
 Limited downtime for repairs or maintenance;
 Cheaper equipment may be less reliable and
therefore require greater redundancy;
 Testing and commissioning quality;
 Who will operate and maintain the systems?
 Understanding the poor reliability
consequences.
 Type of magnetron Live time Remarks
No [h]
1 MI 435 (128972) 1200 Heater breakdown
2 MI 435 (128921) 948 Bad vacuum EXPLOITATION
3 MI 435 (981) 792 HV breakdowns
4 MI 470 (993) 22 HV breakdowns
OF MAGNETRONS
5 MI 470 (994) 829 Bad vacuum MI 435 AND MI 470
6 MI 470 (1280004) 1044 Weak emission
7 MI 470 (0201) 2338 HV breakdowns IN ACCELERATOR
8 MI 470 (0202) 2131 Weak emission
9 MI 470 (040601) 882 Weak emission
ELEKTRONIKA 10/10
10 MI 470 (128050402) 1627 Weak emission (10 MeV; 10 kW)
11 MI 470 (61104) 2406 Weak emission
12 MI 470 (081002) 1821 Weak emission
Average life time 1336 [h] (806 → 1868 [h])
 Exploitation of klystron KIU 15 in
acclerator LAE 13/9 (13 MeV; 9 kW)
Electron gun cathodes in accelerator
LAE 13/9 (13 MeV; 9 kW)
24 cathodes lifetime <400 h
24 cathodes lifetime 400-5000 h
16

14
Number of cathodes

12 BaNi
10
Al2O3
8

4 W
2

0
0 1 2 3 4 5

Cathode lifetime [x 1000 h]

 Electron gun cathodes in accelerator
Elektronika 10/10 (10 MeV; 10 kW)

Year of Live time Remarks

No installation [h]
1 1992 9000 Weak emission

2 1998 4500 Replaced in a good condition

together with accelerating section

3 2001 600 Damaged as a result of broken

RF window and output foil
Cathode made of
activated porous
4 2001 22600 In operation tungsten
Average lifetime 9200 [h]
 “Electron10” accelerator in
the line for production of
heat-shrinkage anti-corrosion
coatings (0.75 MeV; 45 kW)
 Gun life time – 3520 h
(average for 5 years period);
 Window foil life time –
3230 h (average for 5 years
period).
“Aurora-5” accelerator in
the line producing
foamed polyethylene
(0.6 MeV; 30 kW)
 Gun life time – 3000 h
 Window foil life time –
3000-4500 h
Major failure examples
(RF ceramic window breakdown)

Broken RF window

Broken Ti foil

Broken Al foil of current monitor

 Scanner after implosion
Improper quality of
output system with
titanium foil
 Bad quality of titanium
foil;
 Distortion of beam
scanning pattern;
 Insufficient air cooling
system;
 Hard particles in cooling
air,
 Improper design of
scanner.
Broken accelerator titanium foil
Titanium foil surface after regular service
Air blow stream
Air nozzle with
support structures

Beams paths
Beam path

100
30

64
2250

Sudden scan current disappearance:

Time of interlock system function 50 ms
Decay of beam current 100 ms
Foil temperature after event 2400 oC
Titan melt temperature 1659 oC
Deformation of accelerating section

 High power of cathode heater

(high temeprature),
 Lack of cooling system,
 Application of polymer glue,
 Heavy load on the top of
accelerating section.
 Damage of HV power supply
Broken isolation of HV transformer (800 kV)
Poor vacuum in
accelerating tube;
 Causing
breakdowns;
 Long HV cable;
 Promotes
oscillations:
 High voltage
oscillations over
limit;
 Insufficient
isolation.
Typical relation between number of failures
and sum of the time when a system can not
perform its intended function
16
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
Summ
Only few events 1 2 3 Number
are responsible
4 5
Time intervals 6
for large downtime.
Typical statistic of failures during period
of accelerator exploitation
Debugging Wearout
Utilization phase
7

5
[Relative units]

0
0 2 4 6 8 10
TIME [Years]
 Reliability chain

Compo- Qualified Successful

Design nents Qualified
quality operation maintenance exploitation
quality
 Progress in reliability

Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA) is a

design tool that mitigates risk during design phase
and measures risk in terms of cost.
 Equipment aging problem
Electrical connections oxidizing,
HV breakdown of dirty cables,
Availability of spare parts,
Communication faults,
Calibration and stability problems.

Maintaining machine availability over the

long term will require significant resource
commitment or a reduction of the machine
performance requirements.
 Second hand accelerators
Safe industrial electron accelerators operation in
extended period of exploitation became a question
due to over 30 years long period in service of some
units and second hand accelerators sometime offered
on the market. The evaluation should be performed to
establish critical parameters like:
 Accelerator reliability (availability),
 Access to the spare parts and cost of accelerator
servicing,
 Safety interlocks condition and reliability,
 Quality of cables, wires and rubber tubes which are
irradiated by scattered radiation (in some cases
replacement is needed in 10-15 years intervals).
 Long accelerators exploitation
Positive answer on above topics may allow on
successful accelerator exploitation in extended
period of time. Such evaluation should be
repeated in 2-5 years period to avoid rapid change
in accelerator availability.
More conservative direct (transformer)
accelerator construction is better suited for longer
exploitation period to compare with microwave
linacs where microwave components with limited
life period are applied. Progress in development of
microwave components creates difficulties in
access to old fashioned spare parts.
 Quality requirements
Quality of components and subsystems,
Design quality,
Quality of exploitation and servicing.

Parallel efforts are necessary regarding:

components, design, exploitation and servicing
quality to achieve suitable accelerator availability
(reliability).
The equipment can be designed to allow fast
interchangebility of units or components.
Share reliability experience policy is also
needed.
 Quality of components
The most common technical problems
of electron accelerators are connected with
lifetime of certain components. The most
critical parts are as follow:
 Gun cathode,
 Window foil for low energy high power
application,
 Vacuum tubes (klystron, magnetron, power
tetrode).
 Much less critical are ion vacuum pump,
which can easily work 40 000 h and more.
 Quality of exploitation and servicing
Operator’s training,
Repair procedures,
Experts on standby ready to intervene,
Quick troubleshooting and component
replacement,
Recording, analyzing failures,
Rigorous spare part policy, ready-to-operate units
available,
Preventive maintenance (devices are replaced
after predetermined operation time),
Built in preventive maintenance scheduling and
monitoring.
 Exploitation of
accelerator facility

Irradiation (95-98%),
Regular maintenance
activity (per day, week, ½
year, year),
Servicing due to unexpected
break downs.
Maintenance and
service principles

Personnel qualification :
In house activity regarding maintenance
and servicing,
Service provided by accelerator
manufacturer.
 Maintenance procedures:
Regular replacement of water and air filters,
Regular replacement of belts, hoses, and
lubricants,
IR detection of electrical connections (3 years
cycle),
Cleaning of HV cables and components (6
months cycle),
Vibration/frequency analysis of rotating
equipment (3 months cycle).
Fault tree and event tree analysis

Fault tree Event tree

Basic events

Initiating
Causes event Consequences
 FAILURE
Before the failure
Design optimization (margin,
materials, modelling, )
 Preventive maintenance
 Experience from other
institution
 Realistic operation schedule
 Redundance
 Avoid human mistakes with
automation when necessary
 Avoid unnecessary interlocks
(passive sensors are
sometimes sufficient)
After the failure:
minimise time
to repair
 Fault diagnostics !
 Rigorous spare part
policy
 Experts on standby 24
hours/day ready to
intervene
 Operator training
 Fast interchangeability of
components (design …)
 Repair procedures
 Conclusions
Appropriate accelerator selection should be
performed to meet all technical and economical
conditions for successful process implementation,
Accelerator reliability is the very important for any
industrial facility
Life time of certain accelerator components
should be extended,
Reliability (availability) should be now a priority for
electron accelerators designers,
Safe industrial electron accelerators operation in
extended period of 30 years of exploitation is
possible when regular spare parts supply can be
afforded.
Parallel efforts should be done regarding: spare
parts, training, servicing procedure,
Failure diagnostic tools are necessary in future
design,
A conservative and reliable accelerator may costs
30-50 % more than a nominal design,
Reducing the downtime due to long failures is
mostly financial issue,
Reliability is now considered at all stages of the
accelerator’s life (from design to maintenance in
routine operation)
Share reliability experience policy is needed.
3. Cost of accelerator facility
operation
 Electron beam and
X-ray facilities

Electron beam System Sales/yr System

& X-ray sold/yr ($M) price
irradiators ($M)
~2000 75 130 0.2 – 8.0
Robert W. Hamm, (2007)
R&M Technical Enterprises, Inc.
 Producers of transformer accelerators
 ESI - Energy Science, Inc.,USA;
 PCT Prod & Mfg, (RPC Technologies), USA;
 RDI - Radiation Dynamics (IBA), USA;
 Wasik Associates, USA;
 NHV - Nissin High Voltage, Japan;
 SHI - Sumitomo Heavy Industries, Japan;
 High Voltage Engineering Europe, Netherlands;
 Institute of Surface Modification, Germany;
 INP - Institute of Nuclear Physic, Russia;
 SIEA - Sci. Inst. of Electrophysical Apparatus, Russia;
 Vivirad, France;
 Res. Inst. of Automation for Machine-Building, China;
 UHF accelerator producers
(100 - 200 MHz)
 INP - Institute of Nuclear Physic, Russia (ILU
family);
 IBA - Ion Beam Application, Belgium
(Rhodotron family);
 Denki Kogyo Co, Japan.
 Linear electron accelerator producers
(microwaves 1.3-5.8 GHz)

 L-3 Communicatios (Titan Beta), USA;

 Mevex, Canada;
 Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Japan;
 Getinge Linacs, France;
 Res. Inst. of Electrophys. Equip., Russia;
 RIA TORYI, Russia;
 Res. Inst. of Automation for Machine-Building,
China.
Estimated capital costs referred to
electron accelerator price:
- Shielding walls, ventilation 15 %
- Building with armature 30 %
-Technological equipment 20 %
- Process control system 5%
- Design and permission 10 %
- Installation and validation 10-20 %
- Amortization (10 years) 10 %
- Service costs (fixed/variable) 3/5 %
Total ~120 %

Investment cost: Ki = 2.2 Ka

 Amortization is the process of
decreasing for an amount over a period
Annual amortization costs

Ka = Ki {i /[ 1 – (1 + i)-n]}
where:
Ki – investment costs,
i – capital interest [%],
n – facility usefulness [years],
for: i = 8 %; n = 15 years
Ka = Ki 0.117
for: i = 8 %; n = 5 years
Ka = Ki 0.25
 Capital costs (investment)
Direct costs
 The preparation of the stand;
 Construction of the building;
 Technological equipment;
 Demolition and disposal (e.g. removal of an old
construction);
 Building new construction or renovation;
 Foundation and supports;
 Electrical service;
 Piping including steam and water lines;
 Heating and ventilation system;
 Air compressor; lighting; sanitary sewer; sprinkler system;
 Painting and insulation;
 Handling and on-site fabrication;
 Equipment purchase cost (including auxiliary devices, sales
tax, instrumentation, monitoring equipment, freight, etc.)
 Capital costs (investment)
Indirect costs
 Project management,
 Facility design,
 Reserve.
 Engineering,
 Construction fees,
 Permitting,
 Regulatory testing,
 Professional fees (including media fees to respond to
public outcry, if the community does not like the
technology choice),
 Start-up,
 Performance testing,
 Contingencies.
 Exploitation costs
Variable costs
 Labor (exploitation, supervision);
 Electricity, water, pressured air, others;
 Materials;
 Spare parts;
 Consumables: chemicals, others,
 Maintenance (scheduled and unscheduled)
 Landfill disposal costs including transportation,
 Cost of disposing wastes not treated by the
technology,
 Cost of treating waste during scheduled and
unscheduled downtime.
 Exploitation costs
Fixed costs:
 Administrative costs with overheads,
 Security, amortization, credit,
 Required license costs,
 Service (planned),
 Commissioning,
 Taxes including land tax,
 Insurance,
 Annual regulatory permit fees,
 Periodic verification or emission tests.
 EB Processing Cost Analysis (CH-CCM, G. Gielenz)
Cost Forecast Based on a Three Shift Operation X 5400 Production-h
with 70% Production Efficiency 3780 Beam-h

Annual Costs in 1'000 USD Variable Fixed

X Facility Depreciation (10 years) 239
Factory Depreciation (25 years) 40
Interest (5%) on Capital Costs 170
Facility Repair & Maintenance (3%) 72
Electrical Power (300kWh x 0.10$/kWh) 113
Cooling Water, Pressurized Air 57
X R&D and Engineering Support 60
X Factory Heating 10
Factory Repair & Maintenance (1%) 10
Manufacturing Overhead 100
General & Administrative Expenses 150
Contingencies (5%) 12 39
Annual Cost Totals 254 818
Annual E-Beam Processing Cost Totals 1072
EB Processing Cost Analysis (CH-CCM, G. Gielenz)
E-Beam Processing Cost Rates in USD/h
Facility 47 198
Operator 15
Variable Part of Manufacturing Costs incl. Operator 62
Cost Rate incl. Oper. (Three shift operation) Totals 260

800
Cost Rate in USD/h

600

400 619

200 350 260 216

0
1 2 3 4
Number of Shifts
 Factors influence pay back period
Scenario Description Pay back
period in
years
Postulated According to 5
plan
Low service cost -20 % 8
Higher work time 4800 h/year 4
Lower work time 3200 h/year 7
Low efficiency -20 % 6
Higher inwestment cost +10 % 6
Delayed start up 3 months 6
 Calculation of mass productivity:
M[kg/s] = P[kW] x F / D[kGy]
where:
M – mass productivity (kg/s)
F – efficiency of beam energy transfer (0.3-0.6)
D – absorbed dose (kGy)
 In general, electron beam technology seems to
have the low operating cost despite its moderate
to high capital costs. The high capital cost of
technology may be compensated by its relatively
low annual operating costs.

 Full set of technical information should be

collected to describe accelerator quality and
evaluate the risk connected with certain
accelerator design. Disadvantages and
advantages should be discussed in details to
optimize a final decision regarding accelerator
selection.
 Estimated cost analysis:
Total capital investment:
Accelerator (100 kW; 1 MeV): 1.0 M$
Reactor, design, building: 1.0 M$ Subtotal
Transport, tax, insurance: 0.5 M$ 2.5 M$
Annual fixed cost:
Interest (6%): 0.15 M$ Subotal
Depreciation (20 years): 0.12 M$ 0.27 M$
Annual operation cost:
Electricity (200 kW): 0.08 M$
Labor (3 shifts): 0.1 M$ Subtotal
Maintenance (2%): 0.05 M$ 23 M$
Total annual cost: 0.5 M$
 Calculation of mass productivity:
M[kg/s] = P[kW] x F / D[kGy]
where:
M – mass productivity (kg/s)
F – efficiency of beam energy transfer (0.6)
D – absorbed dose (2.5 kGy)

M = 100 x 0.6 / 2.5 = 24 kg/s = 86.4 t/h

Total annual production (6000 h; 2.5 kGy): 500 000 t/y

Unit cost: 1 $/t

3

Specification Quan Cost

-tity [k$]
Building equipped with armature and Set 500
shelter with shielding walls (2,4 g/cm3)
shielding walls 60-150 cm, two
manually operated cranes 3 Mg, Industrial
- cubature 1944 m3 ,
- Shielding walls volume V=618 m3, Facility for
wastewater
Accelerator ELV-12 (spare parts, 1 2,400
installation, training)
treatment
Power transformer 630 kVA 1 20 (1 MeV;
Water cooling and ventilation systems 1 120 400 kW;
Water pump station (500 m3/h); tubing 2 400 2,5 kGy)
Reaction vessel 3 60
Sub total 3,500
Design and reserve 20% 700
Totally 4,200
 Investment cost [$]
Accelerator, spare parts, 2,400,000
Remarks:
installation, training - The operating schedule:
Building with shielding walls 500,000 3 shifts per day; 24 h/day; 7
Equipment 1,300,000 days/week; 365 day/year with
availability 96% what
Totally 4,200,000 corresponds to 8,410 h/year of
Fixed costs [$] facility operation.
Amortization (20 lat) 210,000 - The capital cost is assumed to
Interest rate (8 %) 336,000 be financed at 8 % interest for
Equipment service 18,000 20 years period.
Administration 36,000 - The electricity consumption
Totally 600,000 700 kW/h and electricity cost
Variable costs [$] 0.05 $/kWh.
Team 144,000 - Average salary 2000 $/month
Electricity 294,000 (6 persons). That includes: net
Services 62,000 salary, social security and
Tottaly 500,000 welfare costs, pension funds,
Total yearly cost 1,100,000 direct and indirect cost of
Throughput [t/y] 2,726,400 training, payroll taxes and
Total unit cost [$/t] 0.40 addition costs that occur in
connection with employment.
 Remarks
The most important tool for each application is
not the accelerator but the beam. The system
must satisfy the beam specifications for a given
application;
Initial capital cost, operating cost and reliability of
the entire system play important role „for-profit”
application;
New systems must be proven in an industrial
setting, so new accelerator technology can require
a number of years for market penetration.
4. Criterions of accelerator selection
 There are four distinctly different kind of
commercial activity in the field of radiation
processing:
 Technology development;
 Accelerator design and construction;
 Facility construction
 Technology application (marketing, economy).

Many labs conduct R&D in accelerator physics

and only a few private companies manufacture
commercial electron accelerators.
New accelerator busyness can be successful
only with new ideas in accelerator design and
application.
Commercialization of radiation technology
Barriers Subject Responsibility
Technology  Scientific basis Scientist/
 Technology researches
specification
 Know-how
Equipment  Accelerator Equipment
parameters producers
 Underbeam equipment
 Auxiliary equipment
Marketing  Right product Advertising
 Right time and
 Right place promotion
Economy  Investment cost Product
 Exploitation cost manufacturers
 Profit expectation
 Radiation process effectiveness
Acceptable Type of Product
price of 1 W radiation characteristics
electron process
beam power
100-250 $/W Semiconductors Low dose
modification Small scale
High unit price
100-50 $/W Radiation Medium dose
sterilization Large scale
Medium unit price
<2.5 $/W Flue gas Low dose
treatment Very large scale
No commercial
value
 Electron beam (not accelerator) –
is the most important tool for radiation
application and electron beam
parameters should be selected at first.
Therefore a system must satisfy the
beam specifications for given
application before it is a useful tool.
 Criterions of accelerators selection
Criterion of selection
Fundamental accelerator parameters
 Electron energy
 Average beam power
Terms of accelerator purchase:
 Price
 Producer
 Terms of delivery and installation
 Warranty conditions
 Exploitation cost
Auxiliary accelerator parameters
 Scan performances
 Auxiliary parameters
 Measure and control
 Main components and systems
 Accelerator external supply service
Remarks
The basic requirements which
define technological abilities and
facility productivity
Economical aspects of accelerator
purchase which define investment
and exploitation costs; period of
time needed for facility completion
Auxiliary parameters which may
characterize accelerator quality
and provide necessary data for
facility design
Penetration [g/cm2] =
0.37(Energy [MeV] - 0.2)
for one side treatment
and equal entrance and Electron energy
exit doses

Nominal energy [MeV];

Electron energy adjustment range [MeV];
Energy spread [±%];
Energy instability [%/h];
Energy day to day reproducibility [%/24h];
Energy single selection action;
Method of electron energy evaluation.
Productivity [kg/h] =
3600 x Power [kW] x
Utilization efficiency / Average beam power
Dose [kGy]

 Nominal average beam power [kW];

 Type and range of beam power adjustment;
 Nominal average beam current [mA];
 Beam current instability [%/h];
 Type and range of beam current setting;
 Beam current day to day reproducibility
[%/24h];
 Beam pulse parameters (repetition frequency,
(min/max), pulse current, pulse duration).
 General requirements
 Product to be radiation treated dimensions,
densities and throughputs;
 Operation schedule and seasonal requirements;
 Vertical or horizontal beam direction;
 Reliability of the accelerator (availability);
 Remote accelerator operation;
 Factory assembling test;
 Warranty conditions;
 Post warranty service;
 Staff training;
 Facility certification (equipment, safety, personnel).
 Basic accelerator facility features:
 Precise dose delivery in suitable range,
 Very low dose delivery (1-0.1 kGy),
 Uniform dose delivery,
 Active beam process control
(increasing/decreasing speed of product),
 Dose adjustment without interruption
irradiation process,
 Operation time 24 h/day; 7 days/week,
 Start of facility operation:
*Fast start-up (few minutes),
**Warm start-up (milliseconds),
 Scan parameters
Scan length (min/max);
Scan angle;
Scan frequency [Hz];
Scan homogeneity [±%];
Scan stability;
Additional electromagnets for
scan homogeneity correction.
 Accelerator external
supply service

 Electricity consumption, grounding, UPS system;

 Additional power line (if needed);
 Stand-by conditions (if needed for vacuum
system);
 Water cooling systems;
 Compressed air;
 Air cooling and ozone ventilation;
 Safety installations (personnel, fire, TV system).
 Facility (building)

Equipment installation area;

Irradiation room surface and volume;
Storage and handling areas;
Total building surface and volume;
Land area;
Lifting devices.
 Conveyor parameters
 Type of conveyor construction;
 Speed range [m/min];
 Instability of conveyor movement [%];
 Irradiated unit dimensions;
 Mode of operation (continuos, stop-run,
multipass, upside down irradiation);
 Dose range (min/max) [kGy];
 Beam/conveyor interlock system;
 Beam current and conveyor speed feedback.
Traceable movement of the product
before, during and after treatment:
 Control of initial accumulation area,
 Encode of unit product package,
 Eliminations the gaps between unit product
packages,
 Driving each carton within specification under the
irradiation process,
 Size product specification upon request.
Control system key modules
Intuitive user Interface
Advance maintenance and diagnostic tools
Autonomous vacuum system
Automatic conditioning
Remote control and support
Data tracking, trending and archiving
Process Control System Main Benefits
 Production line integration
The central control system manages the entire production line
(on a wire crosslinking line, it will handle pay-off, take-up,
quality monitoring, product handling devices, etc.);
 Advanced traceability
When needed, process production data such as production
reporting and statistical quality control are easy to archive or
recall.
 Bar code reading
Proces Control System can manage the bar code to simplify
the product identification.
 Management of production recipes
Standard production recipes are defined so as to easily manage
customer production orders.
 Product tracking system
Accelerator
Conveyor
Modem for Safety system
Remote Access
Diagnostics Touch Panel Interface
Support Control and monitoring
Upgrades
PLC Control
Process Monitoring
System Load Station
Customer Access

Unload Station
Event Printer Main Station
Reports
Report Printer Validation
Standard Reports
Custom Reports
Server
 Advantages (low risk)
 Proven accelerator technology;
 Simplicity of construction;
 Long life power components (klystron, tetrode);
 High parameters stability;
 High beam power;
 Narrow energy spread;
 Wide range of power adjustment;
 Computer supported control system;
 Low accelerator cost;
 Low exploitation cost;
 High quality maintenance service.
 Disadvantages (high risk)
 Prototype accelerator construction (limited
exploitation experience);
 Parameters on the edge of present limits;
 Power components with limited life time
(magnetron);
 Low average beam power;
 High electric energy demands;
 Poor accelerator availability;
 Small company with limited resources;
 High total cost;
 Difficulties in spare parts availability.
 Low-Energy EB Advantages

 Use of Near-Zero VOC Materials

 Very Efficient Energy Transfer

 Self-Shielded
Occupational Safety and Health Standard
Fed. Reg. 37, #202, Part II, 21158, Oct. 1972
“unrestricted area”…. “any area, access to which
is not controlled by the employer for purposes of
protection of individuals from exposure to radiation”
 Remarks
Characteristics steps can be recognized in the past of
accelerator development. Present stage of accelerator
technology perfection includes: cost effectiveness,
reliability, compactness and introduction of MW beam
power level.
Demands coming from growing fields of radiation
processing technology implementation have a strong
impact on R&D process of accelerator technology.
Any practical accelerator construction must be
compromise between size, efficiency and cost.
The electrical efficiency is very important parameter for
high power accelerators. Special attention should be
devoted to optimize electrical energy consumption for
accelerator and auxiliary equipment installed in radiation
facility.
 The most important tool for each application is not
the accelerator but the beam. Radiation facility must
satisfy the beam specifications for a given application.
 Initial capital cost, operating cost and reliability of the
radiation facility play an crucial role in any industrial
(for-profit) applications.
 Users are always interested in lower total cost, so new
technologies to increase the return on investment are
always welcome.
 New systems must be proven in an industrial
confirmed acceptance, so introduction of a new
accelerator technology can require a number of years
for widespread market penetration.
Cost reduction is one of the key factors of
successful radiation technology
implementation.
Annual cash flow projections are common
techniques used for analyses of economic
option.
Economical analysis based on annual fixed and
variable costs evaluation is very useful to
recognize accelerator facility economical
condition.
Major industrial accelerator producers are located in USA,
Russia, Japan, France and Belgium. Several other
countries including Poland are capable to produce
accelerators on limited scale.
The R&D program of accelerator technology perfection is
tightly connected to progress in development of advanced
technology in many branches of technical activity (power
components, control systems).
New accelerators constructions can frequently offer
better economic and technical characteristics but only
long time operation can revile weak points of certain
accelerator construction in practical industrial conditions
The progress in accelerator technology is not a quick
process but can be easily noticed in longer time scale.
 Appropriate accelerator selection should be
performed to meet all technical and economical
conditions for successful process implementation,
 Accelerator reliability is the very important for any
industrial facility including environmental
applications,
 Life time of certain accelerator components should
be extended.
 Commercialization of accelerator technology may
be profitable in long term. The government policy
should promote environmental application when
risks and benefits are equally important.
 In the case of electron accelerators spare parts
and major maintenance service are available
usually from the manufacturer due to that
highly trained personnel are not required to
run modern accelerators because of simplicity
of its operation under computer support.
 High frequency accelerators are more costly to
operate due to their more complex
construction and much more expensive spare
parts like klystrons and magnetrons.
 Accelerator selection criteria
 Average beam power (productivity),
 Electron energy (penetration),
 Price (investment cost),
 Electrical efficiency (cost of accelerator
exploitation),
 Size (building geometry and size),
 Reliability (availability >95%).
 Books and Webs
E.J.N. Wilson, Introducion to accelerators
K. Wille, The physics of particle accelerators
W. Scharf, Particle accelerators and their uses
H. Wiedemann, Particle accelerator physics
Proceedings of the CERN Accelerator School
http://cas.werb.cern.ch/cas/
Proceedings of the Accelerator Conferences
http://www.jacow.org/