EVALUATION OF EXISTING PUBLIC DOSE LIMITS APPLIED TO RECREATIONAL SPACEFLIGHT.

Establishing realistic radiation dose limits with a solid scientific basis is a key component of the 'as low as reasonably achievable' (ALARA) principle. Although existing occupational dose limits have been established for civil astronauts, with the rise in popularity and technological maturation of the 'space tourism' sector, there does not appear to be considerable discussion on the subject of non-occupational astronaut dose limits. The necessity to come to a collective decision on dose limits and radiation safety procedures for recreational spaceflight is urgent and imperative to maintain ALARA goals, as existing federal dose limits to the public cannot be adequately or universally applied to the space tourism sector. Development of an entirely new set of regulations and guidelines should also provide long-term benefits in public perception as evidence of safety commitments from decision makers and the community in protecting passengers from radiological risks balanced with other spaceflight hazards.

Dose Estimation for Extravasation of 177Lu, 99mTc, and 18F.

ABSTRACT: Extravasation is the situation in which a nuclear medicine injection deposits some fraction of its radioactivity into the soft tissue rather than the bloodstream and may result in a large local radiation dose to tissue. An understanding of localized radiation dose from such unexpected events can be an important aspect of clinical radiation protection. The aim of this study was to estimate and assess absorbed radiation dose to localized soft tissue for hypothetical scenarios of radiopharmaceutical extravasation. Specifically, the goal was to understand whether a radiopharmaceutical extravasation could exceed the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission's medical event reporting limit of 0.5 Sv dose equivalent to tissue or levels at which tissue damage would be anticipated (1.0 Sv dose equivalent). We used the GATE Monte Carlo simulation software to calculate self-dose to spherical volumes containing uniformly distributed amounts of common radiopharmaceutical isotopes. Simulated volumes, radioactivity levels, and effective half-lives represented real-world nuclear medicine procedures. Chosen scenarios consisted of 50 mCi and 100 mCi 177Lu within 20 cm3 and 40 cm3 tissue volumes and a 60 min biological clearance half-time (59.6 min effective half-life), 6 mCi and 12 mCi 99mTc within 1 cm3 and 5 cm3 tissue volumes and a 120 min biological clearance half-time (90 min effective half-life), and 3 mCi and 6 mCi 18F within 1 cm3 and 5 cm3 tissue volumes with a 30 min biological clearance half-time (23.6 min effective half-life). We calculated absorbed doses to be between 5.5 Gy and 23.5 Gy for 177Lu, between 0.9 Gy and 12.4 Gy for 99mTc, and between 1.5 Gy and 16.2 Gy for 18F. Radiopharmaceutical extravasations can result in tissue doses that surpass both medical event reporting limits and levels at which deterministic effects are expected. Radiation safety programs should include identification, mitigation, dosimetry, and documentation of significant extravasation events.

Low level EPR dosimetry of a commercial sugar.

This work demonstrated the combined utility of empty tube subtraction, over-modulation, native signal subtraction and spectral filtration in low level dosimetry using commercial sugar samples. The native signal component was found to have an effective peak to peak equivalent of 150 mGy. If the zero dose native signal is accurately modeled and subtracted, the detection limit was estimated to be 0.2 Gy although intercept uncertainties were as low as 25 mGy. This was enabled by resultant slope uncertainties as low as 3% with residual variations of approximately 0.1 Gy.

Validation of a rapid, conservative transuranic alpha activity estimation method in air samples.

In air filter assay for radiological emergency response, radon (222Rn) and thoron (220Rn) progeny are known interferents to transuranic activity estimation. Previous work detailed a conservative, graded approach for TRU alpha activity estimation from air samples void of transuranic activity yet containing varying amounts of radon and thoron progeny. Validation of this method to produce rapid, conservative and defensible transuranic alpha activity estimates was accomplished through introduction of surrogate transuranic activity, 239Pu and 230Th check sources, along with the naturally occurring radioactive progeny from an environmental air filter. Following air collection, the filter was centre hole-punched with the transuranic check source placed underneath the filter during counting. With the surrogate transuranic activity introduced into the measurement, verification of the previously studied methodology for rapid transuranic activity estimation was determined with quantifiable conservative bias. 70 environmental filters with various levels of radon progeny and air sampling duration were collected; 35 examined with the 239Pu check source and 35 studied with the 230Th check source. To characterise the expected transuranic activity introduced to the counting experiment without the environmental interferents of radon and thoron progeny, 30 blank filters were counted using the described experimental setup with each of the respective surrogate sources. Following characterisation of the sources with blank filters, transuranic activity estimation comparison against the 70 environmental filters with natural background radioactive progeny interferents was accomplished. This work contributes to the comprehensive analysis of operational air samples by detailing validation results for a rapid and conservative transuranic alpha activity estimation methodology.

INITIAL TL/OSL/EPR CONSIDERATIONS FOR COMMERCIAL DIATOMACEOUS EARTH IN RETROSPECTIVE DOSIMETRY AND DATING.

Diatomaceous earth is found in various locations around the planet. It is caused by the deposited exoskeleton material formed by the death of large concentrated populations of diatoms. The exoskeleton is effectively pure silicate and as such becomes a prospective material for retrospective dosimetry and dating. This work investigated the thermoluminescence (TL) and optically stimulated luminescence properties of commercially obtained diatomaceous earth. The material was not found to have useful dosimetric properties with conventional TL methodologies but did provide large dose estimates using the Single Aliquot Regeneration technique on some subset samples. These findings for organic silicate did suggest some mechanisms explaining the sensitization process in geological silicate materials utilized in dosimetry and dating. Electron paramagnetic resonance was identified as a potential future method for evaluating this material as it revealed unique signal components not found in igneous or commercially produced silicates.

Total Ambient Dose Equivalent Buildup Factor Determination for Nbs04 Concrete.

Buildup factors are dimensionless multiplicative factors required by the point kernel method to account for scattered radiation through a shielding material. The accuracy of the point kernel method is strongly affected by the correspondence of analyzed parameters to experimental configurations, which is attempted to be simplified here. The point kernel method has not been found to have widespread practical use for neutron shielding calculations due to the complex neutron transport behavior through shielding materials (i.e. the variety of interaction mechanisms that neutrons may undergo while traversing the shield) as well as non-linear neutron total cross section energy dependence. In this work, total ambient dose buildup factors for NBS04 concrete are calculated in terms of neutron and secondary gamma ray transmission factors. The neutron and secondary gamma ray transmission factors are calculated using MCNP6™ code with updated cross sections. Both transmission factors and buildup factors are given in a tabulated form. Practical use of neutron transmission and buildup factors warrants rigorously calculated results with all associated uncertainties. In this work, sensitivity analysis of neutron transmission factors and total buildup factors with varying water content has been conducted. The analysis showed significant impact of varying water content in concrete on both neutron transmission factors and total buildup factors. Finally, support vector regression, a machine learning technique, has been engaged to make a model based on the calculated data for calculation of the buildup factors. The developed model can predict most of the data with 20% relative error.

Preliminary Work Toward a Transuranic Activity Estimation Method for Rapid Discrimination of Anthropogenic from Transuranic Activity in Alpha Air Samples.

Radon (Rn) and thoron (Rn) progeny (primarily bismuth and polonium) are known interferents when rapid evaluation of transuranic content on air filters is of interest. These complexities stem from the overlapping energies of the progeny alpha particles onto the transuranic region of interest (3-5.5 MeV) where naturally-occurring alpha emitters can overwhelm the spectra. Due to the immediacy of the alpha counting methods employed, coupled with the half-life of thoron progeny dominated by Pb (t1/2=10.6 h), a conservative transuranic activity estimate with rigorous uncertainty is being sought. A successful transuranic activity estimation method will incorporate any thoron progeny present on the filter providing 95% confidence decision levels in which a filter may be evaluated for emergency response applications. Twenty-three pairs of samples of various duration having no transuranic content were taken over a 2-mo period. The resulting filters were counted in a time series before non-linear least squares decay curve fitting was applied to the decay profile. For the samples considered, a transuranic activity estimator decision level was determined at 0.2 Bq for the given geographic location and months analyzed. Validation of this method for other seasonal and geographic regions could provide enhanced emergency response capability when the presence of transuranic activity is suspected.

Retrospective Imaging and Characterization of Nuclear Material.

Modern techniques for detection of covert nuclear material requires some combination of real time measurement and/or sampling of the material. More common is real time measurement of the ionizing emission caused by radioactive decay or through the materials measured in response to external interrogation radiation. One can expose the suspect material with various radiation types, including high energy photons such as x rays or with larger particles such as neutrons and muons, to obtain images or measure nuclear reactions induced in the material. Stand-off detection using imaging modalities similar to those in the medical field can be accomplished, or simple collimated detectors can be used to localize radioactive materials. In all such cases, the common feature is that some or all of the nuclear materials have to be present for the measurement, which makes sense; as one might ask, "How you can measure something that is not there?" The current work and results show how to do exactly that: characterize nuclear materials after they have been removed from an area leaving no chemical trace. This new approach is demonstrated to be fully capable of providing both previous source spatial distribution and emission energy grouping. The technique uses magnetic resonance for organic insulators and/or luminescence techniques on ubiquitous refractory materials similar in theory to the way the nuclear industry carries out worker personnel dosimetry. Spatial information is obtained by acquiring gridded samples for dosimetric measurements, while energy information comes through dose depth profile results that are functions of the incident radiation energies.

Contributions of Various Radiological Sources to Background in a Suburban Environment.

This work is a brief overview and comparison of dose rates stemming from both indoor and outdoor natural background radiation and household objects within a suburban environment in North Carolina. Combined gamma and beta dose rates were taken from indoor objects that ranged from the potassium in fruit to the americium in smoke detectors. For outdoor measurements, various height and time data samples were collected to show fluctuations in dose rate due to temperature inversion and geometric attenuation. Although each sample tested proved to have a statistically significant increase over background using Students t-test, no sample proved to be more than a minor increase in natural radiation dose. The relative contributions from natural radioactivity such as potassium in foods and common household items are shown to be easily distinguished from background using standard handheld instrumentation when applied in a systematic, methodological manner.

Operational Check Source Recalibration.

A formal protocol whereby a segregated source is used for later quality control trending and recalibration of operational sources is described. The method is of potential use for any quality radioactive assay program where multiple sources may be in use such that long term loss in activity is possible and not readily detected and corrected using common statistical assessment criteria. The method relies upon a rigorous initial characterization effort that can later be credited to minimize error propagation during recalibration to monitor the overall uncertainty budget. A simple example attachment for use in written procedures is also provided.

Using isotopic ratios for discrimination of environmental anthropogenic radioactivity.

When air is pulled into the WIPP repository for ventilation purposes, this air is unfiltered and contains all the components of ubiquitous anthropogenic radionuclides from global nuclear fallout (including Cs and Pu isotopes). Although the NORM in aeolian sand and dust contribute to the gross alpha beta activity on effluent air filters, there remains a need to discriminate effluent TRU generated in the disposal process at WIPP from TRU being pulled into the repository with the unfiltered surface air. This is only evaluated using ratios of Cs and Pu activity found through radioassay of air filters taken from the mine effluent. By characterizing both the credible range of Cs/Pu ratios from the environment and those known to exist in the waste, a rigorous test criteria is attained. The use of HPGE to assay Cs in the intake dust plated out in the mine allowed a gross assay of total TRU radioactivity pulled into the mine over time from global fallout. Radiochemistry of samples from deposition in the mine's air intake shaft was also carried out. The use of net activity ratios at background levels is also shown to follow a Cauchy distribution in terms of their expected statistical distributions.

Problems found using a radon stripping algorithm for retrospective assessment of air filter samples.

An evaluation of a large number of air sample filters was undertaken using a commercial alpha and beta spectroscopy system employing a passive implanted planar silicon (PIPS) detector. Samples were only measured after air flow through the filters had ceased. Use of a commercial radon stripping algorithm was implemented to discriminate anthropogenic alpha activity on the filters from the radon progeny. When uncontaminated air filters were evaluated, the results showed that there was a time-dependent bias in both average estimates and measurement dispersion of anthropogenic activity estimates with the relative bias being small compared to the dispersion, indicating that the system would not give false positive indications for an appropriately set decision level. By also measuring environmental air sample filters simultaneously with electroplated alpha sources, use of the radon stripping algorithm demonstrated a number of substantial unexpected deviations from calibrated values indicating that the system would give false negative indications. Use of the current algorithm is, therefore, not recommended for general assay applications. Use of the PIPS detector should only be utilized for gross counting without appropriate modifications to the curve-fitting algorithm. As a screening method, the radon stripping algorithm might be expected to see elevated alpha activities from pure Pu on air sample filters (not due to radon progeny) around the 200 disintegrations per minute level.

Use of alpha spectroscopy for conducting rapid surveys of transuranic activity on air sample filters and smears.

This paper demonstrates the utility of a portable alpha Continuous Air Monitor (CAM) as a bench top scalar counter for multiple sample types. These include using the CAM to count fixed air sample filters and radiological smears. In counting radiological smears, the CAM is used very much like a gas flow proportional counter (GFPC), albeit with a lower efficiency. Due to the typically low background in this configuration, the minimum detectable activity for a 5-min count should be in the range of about 10 dpm which is acceptably below the 20 dpm limit for transuranic isotopes. When counting fixed air sample filters, the CAM algorithm along with other measurable characteristics can be used to identify and quantify the presence of transuranic isotopes in the samples. When the radiological control technician wants to take some credit from naturally occurring radioactive material contributions due to radon progeny producing higher energy peaks (as in the case with a fixed air sample filter), then more elaborate techniques are required. The techniques presented here will generate a decision level of about 43 dpm for such applications. The calibration for this application should alternatively be done using the default values of channels 92-126 for region of interest 1. This can be done within 10 to 15 min resulting in a method to rapidly evaluate air filters for transuranic activity. When compared to the 1-h count technique described by , the technique presented in the present work demonstrates a technique whereby more than two thirds of samples can be rapidly shown (within 10 to 15 min) to be within regulatory compliant limits. In both cases, however, spectral quality checks are required to insure sample self attenuation is not a significant bias in the activity estimates. This will allow the same level of confidence when using these techniques for activity quantification as is presently available for air monitoring activity quantification using CAMs.

Curve fitting air sample filter decay curves to estimate transuranic content.

By testing industry standard techniques for radon progeny evaluation on air sample filters, a new technique is developed to evaluate transuranic activity on air filters by curve fitting the decay curves. The industry method modified here is simply the use of filter activity measurements at different times to estimate the air concentrations of radon progeny. The primary modification was to not look for specific radon progeny values but rather transuranic activity. By using a method that will provide reasonably conservative estimates of the transuranic activity present on a filter, some credit for the decay curve shape can then be taken. By carrying out rigorous statistical analysis of the curve fits to over 65 samples having no transuranic activity taken over a 10-mo period, an optimization of the fitting function and quality tests for this purpose was attained.

An EPR model for separating internal 90Sr doses from external gamma-ray doses in teeth.

The problem of retrospectively measuring radiation doses to humans having both external and internal exposures is addressed. A simplified theoretical model is presented by which the internal exposure from a bone seeking radionuclide can be measured and distinguished from an external gamma-ray dose. The model also provides a means of estimating initial acute uptakes of 90Sr.

Alpha CAM alarm set points in a salt dust environment.

While considering the regulatory and site specific requirements for Continuous Air Monitor responses in the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant underground (which is a salt mine), a number of issues relating to the buildup of salt (NaCl) on the filters must be considered when determining the alarm set points. As the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant is a Department of Energy facility, alarm set point determination must be made in light of the regulatory drivers and physical limitations found when monitoring for airborne contamination in an underground salt mine. The use of dual alarm set points is also exploited to implement a graded approach to alarm responses.