SPECIAL NOTICE
A -- TECHNOLOGY/BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY RADIONUCLIDE ANALYSIS KIT (RNAK) SYSTEM SOFTWARE
- Notice Date
- 8/23/2010
- Notice Type
- Special Notice
- NAICS
- 238990
— All Other Specialty Trade Contractors
- Contracting Office
- Department of Energy, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (DOE Contractor), Industrial Partnerships & Commercialization, 7000 East Avenue, L-795, Livermore, California, 94550
- ZIP Code
- 94550
- Solicitation Number
- FBO225-10
- Archive Date
- 9/24/2010
- Point of Contact
- Connie L Pitcock, Phone: 925-422-1072
- E-Mail Address
-
pitcock1@llnl.gov
(pitcock1@llnl.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- TECHNOLOGY/BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY RADIONUCLIDE ANALYSIS KIT (RNAK) SYSTEM SOFTWARE Mixture Analysis Algorithm for Identification of Radio-Nuclides Using Medium Energy Resolution Detectors and Shielding and Activity Estimator for Template-based Nuclide Identification Algorithms Opportunity : Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), operated by the Lawrence Livermore National Security (LLNS), LLC under contract with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), is offering the opportunity to license intellectual property rights covering this technology for commercialization. Background : Automated gamma-ray spectrum analysis to identify radioactive materials is a critical capability for a broad range of national security applications. The gamma detectors typically consist of energy-sensitive scintillation materials that collect photons in order to produce a histogram of pulse energy often referred to as a gamma ray spectrum. Analysis algorithms process this spectrum to identify radioactive materials. This problem is challenging due to the variety of spectral shapes that are produced by radionuclide when coupled with detector resolution, detector calibration drift, source shielding and environmental scattering. Researchers at LLNL have created a complete analysis system that contains all of the required elements for robust identification. The system and code implementation is referred to as the Radionuclide Analysis Kit (RNAK). Description : The mixture analysis algorithm analyzes height spectrum taken from a medium resolution scintillation detector and determines the mixture of radionuclides which produced the spectrum. This algorithm uses a technique known as branch and bound to construct a tree of possible solutions. Through the use of inequalities it can prune massive branches of the tree and thus can optimize over the roughly 2 100 different possible combinations swiftly. The shielding and activity estimator algorithm can be used in conjunction with a template based nuclide identification algorithm to estimate the shielding and activity of the source. Shielding and activity are critical parameters to be able to distinguish between threatening and non-threatening nuclear materials. Advantages : The mixture analysis algorithm is a significant improvement to the handling for nuclide identification. Most nuclide identification algorithms either use peak extraction and an expert system or full template matching techniques. Peak extraction with an expert tree works reasonably well on high resolution detectors (HPGe), but is less effective on low to mid energy resolution scintillators. Template matching makes better use of the information, but requires solving a potentially huge optimization program. As a result, all template matching algorithm depend on heuristics to reduce the required computation. These heuristics has the significant downside that they can miss the optimal solution entirely. This new application of branch and bound algorithm eliminates this problem while keeping the computation requirements in check. The shielding and activity estimator algorithm can utilize the information from the template matching algorithm to create reasonably accurate estimate of the shielding configuration and the source activity. This can then be used in automated routines for alarming in hand-held detectors for first responders or to provide the initial model for a more detailed analysis. Potential Applications : The RNAK System Software can be used in handheld radiation detectors, mobile radiation detectors, portal monitors, and nuclear safeguards monitoring. Development Status: LLNL has filed two Patent Applications on the RNAK system and software. LLNL is seeking industry partners with a demonstrated ability to bring such inventions to the market. Moving critical technology beyond the Laboratory to the commercial world helps our licensees gain a competitive edge in the marketplace. All licensing activities are conducted under policies relating to the strict nondisclosure of company proprietary information. Please visit the IPO website at https://ipo.llnl.gov/?q=resources-industry-working_with_us for more information on working with LLNL and the industrial partnering and technology transfer process. Note: THIS IS NOT A PROCUREMENT. Companies interested in commercializing LLNL's RNAK System and Software technology should provide a written statement of interest, which includes the following: 1. Company Name and address. 2. The name, address, and telephone number of a point of contact. •3. A description of corporate expertise and facilities relevant to commercializing this technology. Written responses should be directed to: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Industrial Partnerships Office P.O. Box 808, L-795 Livermore, CA 94551-0808 Attention: FBO 225-10 Please provide your written statement within thirty (30) days from the date this announcement is published to ensure consideration of your interest in LLNL's RNAK System and Software technology.
- Web Link
-
FBO.gov Permalink
(https://www.fbo.gov/spg/DOE/LLNL/LL/FBO225-10/listing.html)
- Record
- SN02251395-W 20100825/100823235432-92f378b0bc732295e059f2ba7724959d (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
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