SAUNA system upgrade for certification of the Takasaki IMS station

Tomita, Yutaka ; Kumata, Masahiro; Wakabayashi, Shuji; Kijima, Yuichi ; Yamamoto, Yoichi ; Oda, Tetsuzo

A SAUNA system was installed for monitoring of radioxenon at the Takasaki IMS station (JPX38) in Japan in December, 2006. The test operation had been performed from 2007 to 2014, and valuable monitoring data and operation and maintenance experiences were obtained. Though the CTBTO planned to start system upgrade of the JPX38 for certification in April, 2013, the upgrade plan was postponed since JPX38 detected radioxenon isotopes early in April, 2013, which were derived from the third nuclear test announced by North Korea. To prevent missing data during the period of upgrade, the TXL was installed near JPX38 as an alternative measurement system and started to operate in January, 2014. The JPX38 upgrade was carried out from January to April, 2014 to replace some parts with new ones and to implement some new functions. Stability and reliability of the JPX38 are definitely increased by these improvements. JPX38 obtained the certification on December 19, 2014.