Determination of pit-coal ash content with the use of an (α, n) neutron source

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Activation with fast neutrons from a Pu/Be source enables the 28Si(n, p) 28 Al and 27Al(n p) 27Mg reactions to be utilized. Seventy-two samples of pit coals with ash contents ranging from 3 to 40% were measured. The calibration function between ash content and both 1.78- and 0.84-MeV γ-ray counts was linear. The standard deviation was 0.9% for a 17% ash content and 1.4% over the whole range of ash contents. Comparison with other methods is discussed.