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The radiation hardness, the chemical resistance, and the capabilities to operate at high temperature conditions make diamond detectors a good option for carrying out fast neutron measurements on fusion plasma experiments or facilities using accelerator-driven neutron sources. A correct energy calibration of pulse-height spectra acquired through diamond detectors allows to perform fast neutron spectrometry. As a general rule, energy calibration of diamond detectors is performed using an alpha source, e.g. 239Pu, 241Am, 244Cm, whose characteristic emission energies are in the range from 5 to 6 MeV. Calibration at higher energies, such as those related to charged particles (about 8.4 MeV) produced by the 12C(n,alpha)9Be induced by fast neutrons coming from D-T fusion reaction, is traditionally extrapolated with the hypothesis of linearity for the energy calibration curve. In this work an evaluation of the diamond detector energy calibration based on alpha source emissions is performed at higher energies by means of a compact D-T neutron generator, able to produce neutrons within a broad energy range, by changing the accelerator voltage and the neutron emission angle. A relative deviation less than 2% between experimental and theoretical energies was observed, showing that the energy calibration through alpha sources could be still valid for fast neutrons coming from D-T fusion reactions.

A collaboration between different facilities in Casaccia and Frascati ENEA research centers has recently opened the possibility of performing irradiation experiments using different kinds of particles such as protons, neutrons, and electrons. The facilities involved in the project are the TAPIRO fast nuclear research reactor, the TOP-IMPLART proton accelerator (71 MeV), the REX electron accelerator (5 MeV) and the FNG neutron facility (2.5/14 MeV). This suite of plans represents a distributed irradiation facility using different particles and spectra, offering various irradiation capabilities for experiments in many fields, such as: nuclear physics, accelerator physics, aerospace, science material, medicine, detectors, radiation diagnostics, etc. Complete numerical models of all the facilities have been implemented to perform start-to-end simulations before experimental irradiation using beam dynamics and nuclear transport simulation codes. In addition, our distributed irradiation facility makes it possible to recreate an essential part of the Van Allen Belt radiation allowing us to check the FLUKA quantitative calibration regarding this specific simulation, facilitating the disentanglements of the uncertainties. Finally, a comparison of the estimated silicon 1 MeV neutron equivalent fluence (SI1MEVNE) of the radiation damage imparted by the different facilities is presented.

Current radiological characterization protocols applied in nuclear installations provide a valuable set of information used to assess level and distribution of radioactivity, which is a crucial information in the plant management. Nevertheless, typical routines may present limitations that novel technologies can alleviate. In this work, a new-generation 3D pixelated CdZnTe gamma imaging and spectrometer detector has been used at TRIGA RC-1 Research Reactor in ENEA Casaccia Research Centre to assess its performances in several possible tasks and effectively understand this technology readiness. In particular, three possible tasks have been considered: survey of potentially contaminated area (with determination of known and unknown hot spots), source identification and localization (including neutron sources via their gamma emissions), and quantification of isotope-specific activities in generic components thanks to the point-kernel-based algorithm the system is equipped with. The experience has demonstrated the capability to achieve reliable results in these tasks, with consequences that could impact not only the current characterization protocols but also the way some Nuclear Safeguards and Non-Proliferation operations are performed.

Utilities have a key role in the transition to a more economically and socially sustainable future. Driven by pressures from investors, regulators, government and society, companies across all sectors are setting bold ambitions for sustainability. However, they strongly depend on the utility industry meeting their own sustainability goals. Despite the relevance of their role, the determinants and obstacles to the adoption of sustainability practices by utility companies have been little investigated by scholars. This article aims to bridge this gap through a systematic literature review of 72 articles published from 1990 to 2023 in the accounting and management fields. After the analysis of bibliometric data and keywords used for science mapping, this study developed an in-depth review of the literature. Five different clusters, corresponding to the main research topics on which management and accounting literature has focused over the last 30 years, were identified. The results highlight that the expanding regulation and institutional pressures coming from governments, financial investors, consumers and society represent the primary factors that are driving utility companies toward sustainability. However, there are still several obstacles preventing utility companies from radically changing their business models, including the high costs associated with the technological and process innovations required. This study offers theoretical and practical contributions and policy implications. It contributes to systematizing literature on this topic, evidencing existing gaps and future research guidelines. It also outlines some managerial propositions that may be useful for practitioners, governments and policymakers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]