Calculation of the neutron slowing down length in rocks and soils

An original method of calculating the slowing down length of neutrons (Lsub(s)) using the multigroup approach is presented. The method takes into account the elastic scattering, the inelastic scattering and the neutron absorption during slowing down. The computational procedure applies for soils and rocks of any chemical composition and for neutron sources of energies up to 10.5 MeV. The method has been employed for the water saturated sandstone, limestone, dolomite and some other media, for different neutron sources. A satisfactory agreement between the calculated Lsub(s) values and the available experimental data has been obtained. The dependences of Lsub(s) on the neutron energy and chemical composition of the rocks have been investigated. (author)