Performance testing of the Eberline RMS-II criticality accident monitor

The Plutonium Facility at Los Alamos uses Eberline RMS-II monitors as part of its criticality accident alarm system. The monitors are designed to accommodate a wide spectrum of criticality accident scenarios from both liquid and metal supercriticalities. A series of experiments were performed at the Los Alamos Critical Experiments Facility to evaluate the response of the monitor to a wide range of radiation transients. The primary objectives of the evaluation were to verify reliable and prompt latching of the criticality alarms in accordance with the performance criteria of ANSI/ANS-8.3-1986. The RMS-II monitor performed reliably during all of the experiments and was found to meet specific ANSI/ANS performance criteria for latching.