In a context of terrorist threat, goods control has become a raising issue for customs, as more and more merchandise transit all around the world. Millions of radioactive sources are currently in use, such as medical and industrial sources, irradiators, sterilization devices, etc. Therefore, it is becoming crucial to prevent any hazardous loss of control, theft, illicit traffic and criminal usage. Freight containers, in particular, are potential means of smuggling illegal items such as nuclear and chemical warfare agents. 

 

As a result, the C-BORD project (Effective Container Inspection at BORDer Control Points) was funded by the “Horizon 2020” European Union programme in order to develop new technologies to detect Special Nuclear Material (SNM), that may enter in the production process of dirty bombs or Radiological Dispersion Devices (RDD).

 

Specialized in industrial innovation, Bertin Technologies and the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) cooperated in the development of a new SNM detection system for the control of road, rail and container loads: SaphyGATE GN. 

 

Thanks to its advanced technology of high-volume plastic scintillation detectors, the SaphyGATE GN can detect artificial and natural radioactive sources, even weak. Ideally suited for homeland security, border control and sensitive access control, the system can prevent illicit movements of radioactive materials in critical sites such as customs, harbors, airports, etc., while providing noninvasive inspection of containers.

 

Able to detect gamma and neutron radioactive sources without using 3He gas, this new generation portal monitor underwent a vast series of tests in Poland’s deep-water container terminal, DCT-Gdańsk. Successfully carried out by the CEA as part of the C-BORD project, the assessments consisted in demonstrating the effectiveness of the controls based on especially prepared cargo. The SaphyGATE GN proved its efficiency thanks to its state-of-the-art technology, placing it at the forefront of the fight against SNM trafficking.