Phoenix Nuclear Labs has been awarded $3.6 million in U.S. Army contracts to build systems to detect defective munitions and concealed bombs.

Under the contracts, the company will build an advanced neutron radiography system to detect defective munitions, and demonstrate the ability to use neutron generators to detect and identify concealed explosives, Phoenix said in a statement.

The delivered pilot system will be the first of its kind to be installed in a munitions production facility.

Phoenix said it is expected to produce a 10 times higher neutron yield, allowing faster performance and higher resolution. It will also produce digital images that will improve the system's ability to analyze and store data.

Along with this, the Neutron-Emitting Mobile Explosives Sensing and Identification System, or NEMESIS, will use Phoenix's neutron generator technology for explosive threat detection.

The vehicle-mounted neutron generator will enable mobile explosive threat detection from large standoff distances, the company said.

Neutron radiography is an inspection technique similar to X-rays.

But neutrons, unlike X-rays, can deeply penetrate high-density materials like shell casings and other metal objects and can visualize low-density materials like carbon or hydrogen.

Until now, only nuclear reactors produced enough neutrons to take such images in a practical time frame, the company said.

Phoenix's new technology offers higher neutron yield without the safety risks associated with nuclear reactors.