Organization and Management of a Radiation Safety Office
Kenneth L. Miller in Handbook of Management of Radiation Protection Programs, 2020
Routine monitoring for a research reactor includes the pool water for fission and activation products, air released from the reactor building, radiation levels at various locations, and liquids from the cooling system or water treatment system. The most common air contaminant is 41Ar produced when air dissolved in the reactor pool water is irradiated with neutrons. Air released may also contain 3H from water evaporated from the pool (a significant release for heavy-water moderated reactors). Research reactor fuel is normally leak-free so that fission products in the water and air are not a serious problem. Experiments in which fissionable material is irradiated are potentially a serious source of fission product contamination and must be reviewed carefully. Personnel monitoring is usually required of all reactor personnel. Neutron dosimeters may be required for persons working around beam ports.
Source of Radiation Exposure in the Workplace: Nuclear, Medical and Industrial Sources
Gaetano Licitra, Giovanni d'Amore, Mauro Magnoni in Physical Agents in the Environment and Workplace, 2018
This process is one of the two main processes generating radioactivity in a nuclear reactor: The main process is the nuclear fission reaction itself, with the splitting of U atoms into radioactive fission fragments, usually contained inside fuel elements' pellets (fission products). The second process is the result of neutron irradiation and capture and is called neutron activation, which leads to the creation of activation products.
Radiation protection in the nuclear industry
Alan Martin, Sam Harbison, Karen Beach, Peter Cole in An Introduction to Radiation Protection, 2018
To understand the hazards associated with reactors, a basic knowledge of nuclear fission and reactor technology is necessary. In this chapter, after a basic discussion of the process of nuclear fission and of reactor technology, the radiological hazards involved in the operation of nuclear reactors are outlined. This is followed by a description of the nuclear fuel cycle and the associated radiological issues.
Modeling principles of protective thyroid blocking
Published in International Journal of Radiation Biology, 2022
Alexis Rump, Stefan Eder, Cornelius Hermann, Andreas Lamkowski, Manabu Kinoshita, Tetsuo Yamamoto, Junya Take, Michael Abend, Nariyoshi Shinomiya, Matthias Port
Nuclear fission processes release a large number of different fission products, including radioactive iodine nuclides. Uranium-235 usually splits asymmetrically and radioioiodine(s) fall(s) in one of the favored mass number regions of the fission products (peaks between 90–100 and 130–140). The main radioactive iodine isotopes formed by fission are iodine-131 (physical half-life, T1/2 = 8.02 d), iodine-129 (T1/2 = 1.57 107 y) and iodine-132 (T1/2 = 2.3 h; from Te-132) (ICRP 2017). Among the different iodine isotopes, iodine-131 is of particular importance (Blum and Eisenbud 1967). Iodine is characterized by its high volatility compared to most other fission products. In the case of nuclear incidents, e.g. nuclear power plant accidents or the detonation of a nuclear weapon, it must be expected that radioiodine will be released and also carried over greater distances (Verger et al. 2001; Chabot 2016). Radioiodine is quickly absorbed into the organism both by inhalation and via ingestion (Geoffroy et al. 2000; Verger et al. 2001). From a practical point of view, intake through contaminated drinking water and food probably plays the decisive role (Blum and Eisenbud 1967).
Why is the multiple stressor concept of relevance to radioecology?
Published in International Journal of Radiation Biology, 2019
B. Salbu, H. C. Teien, O. C. Lind, K. E. Tollefsen
Sources associated with nuclear fission such as the backend of the nuclear weapons and fuel cycles, include the simultaneous releases of a large number of different radionuclides representing spent fuel such as uranium as well as fission products, activation products and actinides. In case of a high temperature and high pressure event (e.g., nuclear detonation, reactor explosion, reactor fire), the release will also include a series of stable metals such as Zr and Nb due to interactions with cladding. Sources associated with the front end of the fuel cycles such as U mining, represent a legacy of long-lived naturally occurring radionuclides in close association with elements such as As and metals such as Cd, Ni, and Pb. Monitoring of the U.S. Superfund Waste Sites showed that radionuclides were commonly found not only together with metals, but also with contaminants such as volatile organic compounds, PAHs, and pesticides (Hinton and Aizawa 2007). Thus, one source can contribute to the release of multiple radionuclides as well as metals and organics to the environment, and assessing a limited number of stressors, one stressor at a time, may easily underestimate the risk.
Funding for radiation research: past, present and future
Published in International Journal of Radiation Biology, 2019
Kunwoo Cho, Tatsuhiko Imaoka, Dmitry Klokov, Tatjana Paunesku, Sisko Salomaa, Mandy Birschwilks, Simon Bouffler, Antone L. Brooks, Tom K. Hei, Toshiyasu Iwasaki, Tetsuya Ono, Kazuo Sakai, Andrzej Wojcik, Gayle E. Woloschak, Yutaka Yamada, Nobuyuki Hamada
In the EU, the EC proposed ‘Horizon Europe’ succeeding ‘Horizon 2020’. The proposed budget under Horizon Europe for the Euratom R&T Program is EUR 2.4 billion. The Euratom R&T Program is the only EU program that supports R&T and complements national funding. It supports R&T in both fission and fusion. Research in the context of non-power applications of ionizing radiation focuses on reduction of risks from low dose exposure through the use of these technologies. Research into radiation protection has already benefited the medical sector and has also a significant potential for public benefit in other sectors. The rapidly growing use of nuclear fission technologies worldwide makes Euratom research all the more important. The Euratom R&T also makes improvements in the areas of education, training and access to research infrastructure.
Related Knowledge Centers
- Argon
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