The article is very vague on how the radioactivity allows detection of leaking gas.
The video at the bottom explains from 7:50 in. Gas pressure pressing on a spring holds a radiation shield in place. If the gas leaks the shield moves and the radiation can be detected.
MH-53E maintainer here. The system is IBIS (Inflight Blade Inspection System) and the little pods are BIM (blade inspection monitors). The box is pretty obvious sitting just behind the main rotor on the deck above the center engine. I found a random picture on the web:
The IBIS devices provide in-flight warning of blade failure on various models of helicopters. One device is located on the root of each blade attached to the rotor. The IBIS detects a decrease in pressure in the blades of a CH-53 model helicopter. Any cracks in the blades will result in a decrease in air pressure in the blade. Such cracks could result in structural failure in the blade, thereby resulting in a potentially dangerous operational situation for the helicopter, such as a hard landing and/or injury to the craft and/or personnel up to, and including, death. Each device contains approximately 500 microcuries (18.5 MBq) of strontium-90 (Sr-90) in the form of a rolled metal foil, encased in a small stainless steel protective cylinder about the size of the press button on a ballpoint pen. The external radiation level of the IBIS is 0.8 mR/hr at 3 inches in the normal (shielded) mode, and 75 mR/hr at 12 inches in the failure (extended) mode.
The video explains it pretty well. There's a spring loaded plunger in that IBIS sensor that can be seen visually by mechanics on the ground. When the pressure drops, the plunger retracts, showing a visual indication. At the same time, it also removes the rad source from its shielding when it does that, increasing emissions for the in flight sensor to see.
It's a medieval measurement, still in popular use. Nowadays it means approximately 2.54 centimeters. Historically, it's the height of the ash pile a "witch" would leave behind, and the word has morphed only slightly from "witches" into "inches."
Actually nowadays it means exactly 2.54 cm as that’s how it is defined. Which also means all distance measured in US Customary units is ultimately metric too
Fast electrons through air mostly have elastic scattering making their long distance path a 3D random walk with exponential dropoff which dominates the inverse square geometric dropoff.
Sr90 beta decays emitting an electron becoming daughter decay product Yttrium-90. Yttrium-90 then beta decays (after a half-life of a few days) emitting more energetic electrons than Sr90, and those electrons travel a mean distance through STP air of maybe meters and effectively don't travel further than say 10m.
At long distance through air the Bremsstrahlung xray radiation dominates? It is generated by the fast electrons curving when passing close to nuclei. Xrays through air are inverse square? I guess it depends on the absorbtion characteristics of air.
AFAIK the above is mostly correct but I haven't checked anything properly sorry.
Basically anything to do with radiation is usually deeply complex and you need to look at all the different factors before making assumptions.
The titanium spar is filled with gas. If there was a crack in the spar the gas would escape, therefore tripping the pressure sensitive radiation shield. Releasing radiation that can be detected inside the helicopter.
Since the radiation source is only exposed if it's indicating a potential main rotor crack, and it's not a very strong radiation source in the first place (so it's not like it allows long distance tracking), it seems like a minor risk -- if the radioactive capsule is exposed, the pilot is going to be returning to safe place to land.
Beta particles typically only travel a few meters in air before they lose most of their energy.
Comments
The article is very vague on how the radioactivity allows detection of leaking gas.
The video at the bottom explains from 7:50 in. Gas pressure pressing on a spring holds a radiation shield in place. If the gas leaks the shield moves and the radiation can be detected.
There's a good comment:
https://assets.verticalmag.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/MH...And:
From https://public-inspection.federalregister.gov/2019-08531.pdf...The video explains it pretty well. There's a spring loaded plunger in that IBIS sensor that can be seen visually by mechanics on the ground. When the pressure drops, the plunger retracts, showing a visual indication. At the same time, it also removes the rad source from its shielding when it does that, increasing emissions for the in flight sensor to see.
What does “inches” mean here
It's a medieval measurement, still in popular use. Nowadays it means approximately 2.54 centimeters. Historically, it's the height of the ash pile a "witch" would leave behind, and the word has morphed only slightly from "witches" into "inches."
Actually nowadays it means exactly 2.54 cm as that’s how it is defined. Which also means all distance measured in US Customary units is ultimately metric too
Inches from the source. Inverse square law applies
Fast electrons through air mostly have elastic scattering making their long distance path a 3D random walk with exponential dropoff which dominates the inverse square geometric dropoff.
Sr90 beta decays emitting an electron becoming daughter decay product Yttrium-90. Yttrium-90 then beta decays (after a half-life of a few days) emitting more energetic electrons than Sr90, and those electrons travel a mean distance through STP air of maybe meters and effectively don't travel further than say 10m.
At long distance through air the Bremsstrahlung xray radiation dominates? It is generated by the fast electrons curving when passing close to nuclei. Xrays through air are inverse square? I guess it depends on the absorbtion characteristics of air.
AFAIK the above is mostly correct but I haven't checked anything properly sorry.
Basically anything to do with radiation is usually deeply complex and you need to look at all the different factors before making assumptions.
Presumably the measure of distance from the source to receive dosages under those conditions.
The titanium spar is filled with gas. If there was a crack in the spar the gas would escape, therefore tripping the pressure sensitive radiation shield. Releasing radiation that can be detected inside the helicopter.
Wireless systems aren’t used for opsec reasons.
Wireless arent used because they need power/wires and are less reliable than IBIS. Civilian versions of sikorsky helos use the same system.
carrying a radiation source doesn't sound very opsec either to be honest...
Since the radiation source is only exposed if it's indicating a potential main rotor crack, and it's not a very strong radiation source in the first place (so it's not like it allows long distance tracking), it seems like a minor risk -- if the radioactive capsule is exposed, the pilot is going to be returning to safe place to land.
Beta particles typically only travel a few meters in air before they lose most of their energy.
Why? It's not like it's gamma radiation.
Wait until you find out about smoke detectors. Or microwave ovens. Or light bulbs. Or anything with nonzero temperature.
Radioactivity has nothing to do with it.
Was solved in Mi-6/Mi-8/Mi-26 blades without it.
I saw they moved to composite blades but why don't they need such a warning system?
Would be actually interesting to know how other helicopters solved this. :)