IAEAInternational Atomic Energy Agency

Sustaining IAEA NeutronCoincidence Counting (INCC),

Past, Present and Future

Joe LongoRemote Monitoring Unit

Safeguards, IAEA

2014-10-21

Heather NordquistDr. Kevin Schaffer

NEN-1, DSA-3, LANL

2014-10-21

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Today’s Outline

• History of IAEA Neutron Coincidence Counting (INCC)• Present status

• INCC 5.04 (2002), preferred and formally accepted by IAEA• NDAR INCC COM modules, for RRP, lessons learned• INCC 5.1.2.* (2003-12), in use, flexible, has advanced modifications for LANL and

RRP• INCC 6, (2014) re-architected, .NET 4.0 code upgrade, List Mode support, new

SQL database, command line and GUI modules

• Future directions• Github presence for DB, DB API, GUI, Data Structs, Reporting & Command Line• Continued specialization for research purposes by LANL• Expanded List Mode processing and analysis support• Product quality INCC6 application• IAEA’s iRAP integration of INCC6 .NET upgraded modules

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INCC History

N. Ensslin, W.C. Harker, M.S. Krick, D.G. Langner, M.M. Pickrell, andJ.E. Stewart, “Application Guide to Neutron Multiplicity Counting,”Los Alamos National Laboratory report, LA-13422-M (1998).

1970s-80s early implementations. Main INCC developed in 1990s atLANL• Main scientist Merlyn Krick, main engineer Bill Harker• C language, approx. 60K lines of code.• 3rd party GUI toolkit isolates Windows GUI details • Proprietary database used for failsafe data retention on 1990s Windows 95, 98, NT, 2000 OS• Idiosyncratic runtime event and error handling developed over a long period of time with field use of Shift Register instrumentation• Pu mass analysis and related statistical algorithms the results of years ofdevelopment and tuning

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Supported Instrumentation

• PAST and PRESENT INCC 5.04 – 5.1.2• JSR11, SR4, JSR12, HNC, JSR11A, MSR4, MSR4A, DGSR, AMSR• Serial port connectivity, low baud rate• 128 bin limit on multiplicity distributions

• EMERGING INCC 6• Expanded AMSR and JSR15 support• Ethernet and USB connectivity• List Mode support: LANL LMMM 32 channels, PTR-32 32 channels• Two more List Mode instruments have been discussed• Open SQL database schema for SQLite, SQL Server, SQL Server CE

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Present INCC Versions

• Classic INCC 5.04 (2002), the IAEA standard• Provided by LANL with the LANL Deming curve fitting code

Contact our mutual colleague H. Nordquist heather@lanl.gov

• INCC COM Modules for IAEA’s I3S/NDAR (2008)• RRP automated analysis for select INCC algorithms• C++ API design, some limitations, e.g. the old proprietary database• Complex to design, implement, deploy and maintain• One-off design and technology difficult to reuse, but it was close!

• INCC 5.1.2.*, (2003-2012)• In use at RRP, Euratom, US DOE (e.g. LANL), IAEA internal and elsewhere• Enhanced command line and installation support, additional features supporting

unique needs of RRP, Euratom, etc. added over 10 year period by LANL• Provided by LANL as a component of the Integrated Review Software system

(with Radiation Review and others LANL tools) • Used in the current active Euratom/RADAR integration

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Future Versions

• Emerging INCC 6 (2014)• Initial release for testing at LANL and IAEA

• Software architecture redesign with modular GUI, DB, DAQ, Reporting, Analyses• JSR15/AMSR multiplicity distribution limit lifted• List Mode support, LANL LMMM 32 channels, PTR-32 32 channels, several data

file schemes for List Mode data• Open SQL database schema for SQLite, SQL Server, SQL Server CE, others can

be prepared quickly• Enhanced multiplicity calculations supporting multiplicity distribution limit at 1028• Command Line and GUI front ends.• DB API, GUI and Command Line code BSD OSS license.• Calculations and instrument control remain US Govt proprietary• .NET 4.0 code upgrade

• Euratom iRAP• .NET and new architecture permits the assemblies used for new INCC

applications and for upcoming the iRAP integration

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Inspector Data Review Unification

• A single, all-in-one solution sought for inspector review

• J. Regula, et al. 2012• Euratom, and their Remote Acquisition of Data And Review

system (RADAR), and the enhancement Central RADAR Inspection Support Package (CRISP), now known as iRAP, fulfills the requirements.

• Phase I complete 2014, Phase I.1 delivered, acceptance Sep. 2014

• Inspector and stakeholder working group and training in process

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INCC Statistical AnalysisINCC Statistical Analysis

INCC 6 Software Architecture

Pu MassPu Mass

Measurement Data

FilesFiles

InstrumentsInstruments

FeynmanMoments

Etc.List Mode PulsesList Mode Pulses

Shift Register CyclesShift Register Cycles Neutron Rates Singles Doubles Triples Error σ

ControllerController

CMD or GUI DatabaseDatabase

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Phase I iRAP Development

• Enhance CRISP with common IAEA data support• MiniGRAND, JSR12 data• BOT systems (VIFM, NGAM and SEGM)• Quaesta Instruments data (MUND)• Ortec spectral files• TAMS, EOSS, VACOSS• Data authentication/signature verification

• Two tasks enabling efficient and productive future software work• Update legacy VB code base to .NET 4.0• MS SQL Server database support

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Phase II iRAP Development

• Data Types• EOSS, RMSA Seals Data, new TAMS Data• Surveillance Data, Operator Declarations?

• Time Zone Info (NGSS, NGAM)• Analyses

• INCC, neutron analysis for Pu mass• Data Handling (smoothing, detecting changing signals)• Technical reports (SOH)• Core Discharge Monitor

• GUI Changes• iRAP algorithm evaluation for IAEA needs

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Phase II INCC for iRAP Development

• Current CRISP/INCC integration based on 5.1.2.*• Incremental Phase II checkpoints

• First: INCC 6 .NET assemblies and DB used for analyses calculations, existing behaviour with CRISP framework for.ini, .NCC and text files retained

• Second: Remove use of external config and data and text files. That is, runtime configuration and data is presented directly via APIs from iRAP to INCC. Results retained in local DB.

• Third: local runtime INCC database is an extended set of tables for the master iRAP SQL database

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INCC Euratom Legacy Details

• Current iRAP/INCC integration• Requires a carefully prepared runtime environment for the INCC application• Detector and calibration parameters must be specified prior to use• Resource locations must be pre-defined• Configuration is in static .ini text files, specific data files for isotopics and other

analysis-specific parameters, AND a proprietary INCC database• Neutron event data exported as a ‘Radiation Review Measurement Data File’, a

binary data file, suffix .NCC• The combination of hard-coded file system paths and file names, with data and

configuration details spread across several files and a binary DB, makes for a rigid, inflexible and brittle system

• INCC version 5.1.2.*, single executable, controlled by CRISP with a process-based command line invocation

• Results preserved in local database and in text files in a predefined location

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First Checkpoint for Phase II INCC iRAP

• New approach phases in flexible configuration and processing details by internalizing the prepared configuration parameters and data

• INCC .NET assembly programmatically invoked, configuration details prepared as before but all in a single local SQL database • iRAP created NCC event data files as before• INCC assembly invoked with all parameters previously in .ini files and

elsewhere, but now in a programmatic data structure. File proliferation solved! The parameters specify the location of input and output files, the selected analyses and, other details. As before, system calibration parameters prepared for the selected detector and analysis are prepared in the INCC local SQL database

• Results go to database and text files

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More Checkpoints for Phase II INCC

• Second checkpoint. All event data is presented programmatically (no .NCC files), all results are stored in the SQL Database, and retrieved for iRAP display and further review from that database. Only the local INCC SQL database is used for configuration and processing. • Test file results retention remains an option

• Third checkpoint. SQL design from INCC .NET becomes an extension of iRAP master SQL database. A local INCC SQL database is now created on the fly from the iRAP master database. All INCC parameters reside in the iRAP master database. In this case, the database itself is a temporary file that may be discarded after each INCC processing session.

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Issues for Phase II INCC

• SQL design for SQL Server requires additional work and great care to get correct

• Analysis enhancements will require performance tuning, only US Govt/LANL can do this internal work

• IAEA and LANL are still dependent upon one experienced person for most of the detailed work. IAEA and LANL are working to train others this year

• Open source projects for DB and GUI may or may not help quality and speed

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Conclusion

• The iRAP software is excellent, available for IAEA use, and supported by quality organizations

• IAEA has in-house software expertise• Colleagues at LANL, the US Support Program and IAEA are in

agreement on the value of this current and future work• I am optimistic!