Photodegradation mechanisms of tetraphenyl butadiene coatings for liquid argon detectors
We report on studies of degradation mechanisms of tetraphenyl butadiene (TPB) coatings of the type used in neutrino and dark matter liquid argon experiments. Using gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry we have detected the ultraviolet-blocking impurity benzophenone. We monitored the drop i...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | en_US |
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Institute of Physics Publishing
2014
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/88282 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6393-0438 https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6243-1453 |
| _version_ | 1811078293786460160 |
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| author | Jones, Benjamin James Poyner VanGemert, J. K. Conrad, Janet Pla-Dalmau, A. |
| author2 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Physics |
| author_facet | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Physics Jones, Benjamin James Poyner VanGemert, J. K. Conrad, Janet Pla-Dalmau, A. |
| author_sort | Jones, Benjamin James Poyner |
| collection | MIT |
| description | We report on studies of degradation mechanisms of tetraphenyl butadiene (TPB) coatings of the type used in neutrino and dark matter liquid argon experiments. Using gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry we have detected the ultraviolet-blocking impurity benzophenone. We monitored the drop in performance and increase of benzophenone concentration in TPB plates with exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light, and demonstrate the correlation between these two variables. Based on the presence and initially exponential increase in the concentration of benzophenone observed, we propose that TPB degradation is a free radical-mediated photooxidation reaction, which is subsequently confirmed by displaying delayed degradation using a free radical inhibitor. Finally we show that the performance of wavelength-shifting coatings of the type envisioned for the LBNE experiment can be improved by 10-20%, with significantly delayed UV degradation, by using a 20% admixture of 4-tert-Butylcatechol. |
| first_indexed | 2024-09-23T10:57:20Z |
| format | Article |
| id | mit-1721.1/88282 |
| institution | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| language | en_US |
| last_indexed | 2024-09-23T10:57:20Z |
| publishDate | 2014 |
| publisher | Institute of Physics Publishing |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | mit-1721.1/882822022-10-01T00:09:38Z Photodegradation mechanisms of tetraphenyl butadiene coatings for liquid argon detectors Jones, Benjamin James Poyner VanGemert, J. K. Conrad, Janet Pla-Dalmau, A. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Physics Jones, Benjamin James Poyner Conrad, Janet We report on studies of degradation mechanisms of tetraphenyl butadiene (TPB) coatings of the type used in neutrino and dark matter liquid argon experiments. Using gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry we have detected the ultraviolet-blocking impurity benzophenone. We monitored the drop in performance and increase of benzophenone concentration in TPB plates with exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light, and demonstrate the correlation between these two variables. Based on the presence and initially exponential increase in the concentration of benzophenone observed, we propose that TPB degradation is a free radical-mediated photooxidation reaction, which is subsequently confirmed by displaying delayed degradation using a free radical inhibitor. Finally we show that the performance of wavelength-shifting coatings of the type envisioned for the LBNE experiment can be improved by 10-20%, with significantly delayed UV degradation, by using a 20% admixture of 4-tert-Butylcatechol. National Science Foundation (U.S.) (NSF-PHY-084784) United States. Dept. of Energy (DE-FG02-91ER40661) 2014-07-11T17:42:27Z 2014-07-11T17:42:27Z 2013-01 2012-12 Article http://purl.org/eprint/type/JournalArticle 1748-0221 http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/88282 Jones, B J P, J K VanGemert, J M Conrad, and A Pla-Dalmau. “Photodegradation Mechanisms of Tetraphenyl Butadiene Coatings for Liquid Argon Detectors.” Journal of Instrumentation 8, no. 01 (January 23, 2013): P01013–P01013. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6393-0438 https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6243-1453 en_US http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/1748-0221/8/01/p01013 Journal of Instrumentation Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/ application/pdf Institute of Physics Publishing arXiv |
| spellingShingle | Jones, Benjamin James Poyner VanGemert, J. K. Conrad, Janet Pla-Dalmau, A. Photodegradation mechanisms of tetraphenyl butadiene coatings for liquid argon detectors |
| title | Photodegradation mechanisms of tetraphenyl butadiene coatings for liquid argon detectors |
| title_full | Photodegradation mechanisms of tetraphenyl butadiene coatings for liquid argon detectors |
| title_fullStr | Photodegradation mechanisms of tetraphenyl butadiene coatings for liquid argon detectors |
| title_full_unstemmed | Photodegradation mechanisms of tetraphenyl butadiene coatings for liquid argon detectors |
| title_short | Photodegradation mechanisms of tetraphenyl butadiene coatings for liquid argon detectors |
| title_sort | photodegradation mechanisms of tetraphenyl butadiene coatings for liquid argon detectors |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/88282 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6393-0438 https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6243-1453 |
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