Observation of radon mitigation in MicroBooNE by a liquid argon filtration system. (1st November 2022)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Abratenko, P.; Anthony, J.; Arellano, L.; Asaadi, J.; Ashkenazi, A.; Balasubramanian, S.; Baller, B.; Barnes, C.; Barr, G.; Barrow, J.; Basque, V.; Bathe-Peters, L.; Benevides Rodrigues, O.; Berkman, S.; Bhanderi, A.; Bhat, A.; Bhattacharya, M.; Bishai, M.; Blake, A.; Bolton, T.; Book, J.Y.; Camilleri, L.; Caratelli, D.; Caro Terrazas, I.; Cavanna, F.; Cerati, G.; Chen, Y.; Cianci, D.; Conrad, J.M.; Convery, M.; Cooper-Troendle, L.; Crespo-Anadón, J.I.; Del Tutto, M.; Dennis, S.R.; Detje, P.; Devitt, A.; Diurba, R.; Dorrill, R.; Duffy, K.; Dytman, S.; Eberly, B.; Ereditato, A.; Evans, J.J.; Fine, R.; Fiorentini Aguirre, G.A.; Fitzpatrick, R.S.; Fleming, B.T.; Foppiani, N.; Franco, D.; Furmanski, A.P.; Garcia-Gamez, D.; Gardiner, S.; Ge, G.; Gollapinni, S.; Goodwin, O.; Gramellini, E.; Green, P.; Greenlee, H.; Gu, W.; Guenette, R.; Guzowski, P.; Hagaman, L.; Hen, O.; Hilgenberg, C.; Horton-Smith, G.A.; Hourlier, A.; Itay, R.; James, C.; Ji, X.; Jiang, L.; Jo, J.H.; Joe, C.; Johnson, R.A.; Jwa, Y.-J.; Kalra, D.; Kamp, N.; Kaneshige, N.; Karagiorgi, G.; Ketchum, W.; Kirby, M.; Kobilarcik, T.; Kreslo, I.; Lepetic, I.; Li, J.-Y.; Li, K.; Li, Y.; Lin, K.; Littlejohn, B.R.; Louis, W.C.; Luo, X.; Manivannan, K.; Mariani, C.; Marsden, D.; Marshall, J.; Martinez Caicedo, D.A.; Mason, K.; Mastbaum, A.; McConkey, N.; Meddage, V.; Mettler, T.; Miller, K.; Mills, J.; Mistry, K.; Mogan, A.; Mohayai, T.; Mooney, M.; Moor, A.F.; Moore, C.D.; Mora Lepin, L.; Mousseau, J.; Mulleriababu, S.; Naples, D.; Navrer-Agasson, A.; Nayak, N.; Nebot-Guinot, M.; Neely, R.K.; Newmark, D.A.; Nowak, J.; Nunes, M.; Palamara, O.; Paolone, V.; Papadopoulou, A.; Papavassiliou, V.; Parkinson, H.B.; Pate, S.F.; Patel, N.; Paudel, A.; Pavlovic, Z.; Piasetzky, E.; Ponce-Pinto, I.D.; Prince, S.; Qian, X.; Raaf, J.L.; Radeka, V.; Rafique, A.; Reggiani-Guzzo, M.; Ren, L.; Rice, L.C.J.; Rochester, L.; Rodriguez Rondon, J.; Rosenberg, M.; Ross-Lonergan, M.; Rudolf von Rohr, C.; Scanavini, G.; Schmitz, D.W.; Schukraft, A.; Seligman, W.; Shaevitz, M.H.; Sharankova, R.; Shi, J.; Sinclair, J.; Smith, A.; Snider, E.L.; Soderberg, M.; Söldner-Rembold, S.; Spentzouris, P.; Spitz, J.; Stancari, M.; St. John, J.; Strauss, T.; Sutton, K.; Sword-Fehlberg, S.; Szelc, A.M.; Tang, W.; Terao, K.; Thorpe, C.; Torbunov, D.; Totani, D.; Toups, M.; Tsai, Y.-T.; Uchida, M.A.; Usher, T.; Viren, B.; Weber, M.; Wei, H.; White, A.J.; Williams, Z.; Wolbers, S.; Wongjirad, T.; Wospakrik, M.; Wresilo, K.; Wright, N.; Wu, W.; Yandel, E.; Yang, T.; Yarbrough, G.; Yates, L.E.; Yu, H.W.; Zeller, G.P.; Zennamo, J.; Zhang, C.; Zuckerbrot, M.;
• Is Part Of: Journal of instrumentation. Volume 17:Number 11(2022)
• Publication Date: 2022-11-01
• Subjects: Counting-gas and liquid purification -- Gas systems and purification -- Noble liquid detectors (scintillation, ionization, double-phase) -- Time projection Chambers (TPC); Scientific apparatus and instruments -- Periodicals; 502.84
• DOI: 10.1088/1748-0221/17/11/P11022
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1748-0221

Abstract

Abstract: The MicroBooNE liquid argon time projection chamber (LArTPC) maintains a high level of liquid argon purity through the use of a filtration system that removes electronegative contaminants in continuously-circulated liquid, recondensed boil off, and externally supplied argon gas. We use the MicroBooNE LArTPC to reconstruct MeV-scale radiological decays. Using this technique we measure the liquid argon filtration system's efficacy at removing radon. This is studied by placing a 500 kBq 222 Rn source upstream of the filters and searching for a time-dependent increase in the number of radiological decays in the LArTPC. In the context of two models for radon mitigation via a liquid argon filtration system, a slowing mechanism and a trapping mechanism, MicroBooNE data supports a radon reduction factor of greater than 97% or 99.999%, respectively. Furthermore, a radiological survey of the filters found that the copper-based filter material was the primary medium that removed the 222 Rn. This is the first observation of radon mitigation in liquid argon with a large-scale copper-based filter and could offer a radon mitigation solution for future large LArTPCs.