Nuclear Engineering and Technology

Korean Nuclear Society (한국원자력학회)
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Preliminary study for the development of radiation safety evaluation methodology for industrial kV-rated radiation generator facilities

  • Hye Sung Park (Department of Physics, Yonsei University) ;
  • Na Hye Kwon (Department of Radiation Oncology, Yonsei Cancer Center, Heavy Ion Therapy Research Institute, Yonsei University College of Medicine) ;
  • Sang Rok Kim (Radiation Safety & Section, KIRAMS) ;
  • Hwidong Yoo (Department of Physics, Yonsei University) ;
  • Jin Sung Kim (Department of Radiation Oncology, Yonsei Cancer Center, Heavy Ion Therapy Research Institute, Yonsei University College of Medicine) ;
  • Sang Hyoun Choi (Research Team of Radiological Physics and Engineering, KIRAMS) ;
  • Dong Wook Kim (Department of Radiation Oncology, Yonsei Cancer Center, Heavy Ion Therapy Research Institute, Yonsei University College of Medicine)
  • Received : 2023.03.31
  • Accepted : 2023.06.29
  • Published : 2023.10.25
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Abstract

Background: This study aims to develop an evaluator that can quickly and accurately evaluate the shielding of low-energy industrial radiation generators. Methods: We used PyQt to develop a graphical user interface (GUI)-based program and employed the calculation methodology reported in the National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements (NCRP)-49 for shielding calculations. We gathered the necessary factors for shielding evaluation using two libraries designed for Python, pandas and NumPy, and processed them into a database. We verified the effectiveness of the proposed program by comparing the results with those from safety reports of six domestic facilities. Results: After verifying the effectiveness of the program using the NCRP-49 example, we obtained an average error rate of 1.73%. When comparing the facility safety report and results obtained using the program, we found that the error rate was between 1.09% and 6.51%. However, facilities that did not use a defined shielding methodology were underestimated by 31.82% compared with the program (the final barrier thickness satisfied the shielding standard). Conclusion: The developed program provides a fast and accurate shielding evaluation that can assist personnel that work in radiation generator facilities and government officials in reviewing safety.

Keywords

Acknowledgement

This study was presented at the International Conference on Nuclear Analytical Techniques in 2022 (NAT2022), which was held in Daejeon, from Dec. 7 to 9, 2022. This work was supported in part by Future Innovation-based Technology Radiation Research (RS-2022-00144201) and the Nuclear Safety Research Program (No. 2205013-0122-CG100) through the Korea Foundation of Nuclear Safety (KOFONS), using financial resources granted by the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission (NSSC), Republic of Korea.

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