A Scintillator Purification System for a Large Scale Solar Neutrino Experiment
J. Benziger, M. Johnson, F. P. Calaprice, M. Chen, N. Darnton, F. Loeser and R.B. Vogelaar.
Nuclear Instruments and Methods – A
Volume 417, Issues 2–3, 11 November 1998, Pages 278-296
doi:10.1016/S0168-9002(98)00767-0 [local copy]
Abstract
An on-line purification system for a large-scale low-background liquid scintillation detector has been tested with the 5 t liquid scintillation detector, the Counting Test Facility at Gran Sasso. Counter-current water extraction removes polar and charged impurities such as ions and metal salts. Vacuum distillation of the entire scintillator has been applied to remove both radioactive impurities and chemical impurities that affect the optical properties of the scintillator. Filtration with a 0.05 μm particulate filter removed suspended dust particles that may contain U, Th and K. Nitrogen stripping was employed to remove dissolved water and noble gases (e.g. 85Kr) from the scintillator. The system has effectively reduced the internal back in the 5 t liquid scintillation detector from 470±90 events/d to the detection limit of the detector (±45 events/d) in the energy window 250<E<800 keV.