Radiation processing with the Messina electron linac

In the last decades radiation processing has been more and more applied in several fields of industrial treatments and scientific research as a safe, reliable and economic technique. In order to improve existing industrial techniques and to develop new applications of this technology, at the Physics Department of Messina University a high power 5 MeV electron linac has been studied and set-up. The main features of the accelerating structure will be described together with the distinctive features of the delivered beam and several results obtained by electron beam irradiations, such as improvement of the characteristics of polymers and polymer composite materials, synthesis of new hydrogels for pharmaceutical and biomedical applications, reclaim of culture ground, sterilization of medical devices, development of new dosimeters for very high doses and dose rates required for monitoring of industrial irradiations.