Liquid Scintillation Cell
Posted: Mon Dec 05, 2011 11:31 pm
The liquid scintillation cocktail / spooled and corrugated silver foil cell (Schmermund Cell for short) is making some progress in the areas of uniformity, ease of assembly, and reduced cost. I've roll milled some half dollar pieces and it's now easy to get a rectangular shape with square corners and uniform dimensions that measure 1" x 12". The thickness is ~3 mils. This leaves little guess work about the surface area and weight. Those who don't have roll mills can buy the foil from suppliers and it is easily cut to size with household scissors. I use this corrugator to build the spacer foil: eBay # 300487910805.
The seller's claim that it is all steel is a stretch (pun) because mine came with aluminum rollers. It still works great, though.
The purpose of this post is just to illustrate the original parts used to construct the first cell. As stated in a previous thread, the PET container is: eBay # 250810955009, and the LSC is Ecolume. The parts shown are prototypes used for fit testing. After a quick Google patent search, it is evident that the novelty of this cell is the transparency of the LSC vs. the amount of Ag surface area and mass that can be activated and detected using the corrugation and spooling method.
The foil shown is 10 mil aluminum flashing which is available in any hardware store. If your going to try and build one of these cells I recommend that you practice with the Al flashing. It will get expensive if you practice with Ag foil.
A new and improved cell that I'm experimenting with now uses machined plastic for cells. I'll make finished cells available for sale when the testing is done. Otherwise, the eBay containers previously listed can be purchased from the supplier very cheaply.
The seller's claim that it is all steel is a stretch (pun) because mine came with aluminum rollers. It still works great, though.
The purpose of this post is just to illustrate the original parts used to construct the first cell. As stated in a previous thread, the PET container is: eBay # 250810955009, and the LSC is Ecolume. The parts shown are prototypes used for fit testing. After a quick Google patent search, it is evident that the novelty of this cell is the transparency of the LSC vs. the amount of Ag surface area and mass that can be activated and detected using the corrugation and spooling method.
The foil shown is 10 mil aluminum flashing which is available in any hardware store. If your going to try and build one of these cells I recommend that you practice with the Al flashing. It will get expensive if you practice with Ag foil.
A new and improved cell that I'm experimenting with now uses machined plastic for cells. I'll make finished cells available for sale when the testing is done. Otherwise, the eBay containers previously listed can be purchased from the supplier very cheaply.