Abstract
This paper describes a complete Monte Carlo study of the Tunisian gamma irradiation facility (CNSTN) using the GEANT4 CERN's code. The work focused on the optimization of the absorbed dose distribution inside the irradiation cell, with and without product. For this purpose, 32 different points at the middle plane of the source rack, 29 positions along Z axis and 7 critical points, were carried out using PMMA dosimeters. Then, to achieve a given bulk density, boxes loaded with "dummy" product were used. Simulated and experimental results are compared and good agreement is observed. It is shown that Monte Carlo simulation improves process understanding, predicts absorbed dose distributions and calculates dose uniformity within product. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.