Distribution of Energy Deposited in Plastic Tubing and Copper-Wire Insulation by Electron Beam Irradiation

Scanned electron beam treatment is used to improve the physical properties of certain polymers, such as shrinkable plastic tubing and insulated wire and cable. Tubing or wires are passed at high speed under the beam scanner, and the material is irradiated to absorbed doses of several Mrad as uniformly as possible, usually by means of a multipass arrangement. In the present study, using irradiation by a scanned 0.4 MeV electron beam, measurements were made of high-resolution distributions of absorbed dose in polyethylene tubing and copper wire coated with polyethylene, nylon, or polyvinyl chloride insulation. Radiochromic dye films equivalent to the insulating materials were used as accurate dosimeters having a response independent of dose rate. Irradiations were in various geometries, wire and plastic thicknesses, positions along the beam scan, and with different backing materials near the wire as it passed through the electron beam.