• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
• /
• v.10 no.7
• /
• pp.489-494
• /
• 2016

Nuclear reaction which occurs in the cyclotron generate unnecessary neutrons. The results of this happening can radioactivate surrounding materials and radioactive materials cause radiation exposure. When people take radioactive air, it makes internal exposure. The purpose of this study was to analyze the radioactive air inside of the ultra-compact 16.5 MeV cyclotron in operation. As a result of study, the radio activation occurred by compact cyclotron generates a very low internal exposure to workers. Comparing the radioactivity from radioactive nuclide with legal standard, that was under reference value. However, it could be at risk for internal exposure in case of higher energy cyclotron. Therefore, legal standard is needed for ventilation equipment of radiation facilities.

• Journal of odor and indoor environment
• /
• v.16 no.4
• /
• pp.297-307
• /
• 2017

As radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas that can cause lung cancer and is classified as a Group 1 carcinogen, it is essential for the public to be aware of what radon is, and how to manage radon. Therefore, general information on radon, as well as its health risks, measurement methods, mitigation methods and suggestions for its management are addressed in this article. Over the last one to two decades, a number of wide-ranging studies on radon measurement and mitigation have been conducted in Korea, and the results of each study are comparable to the research achievements of other developed countries. For this reason, it is time to systematically establish a well-made Korean radon management organization.

• Journal of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology(JNFCWT)
• /
• v.5 no.2
• /
• pp.91-101
• /
• 2007

In this study, domestic regulatory requirement was investigated for self-disposal of concrete waste from nuclear fuel processing facility. And after self-disposal as landfill or recycling/reuse, the exposure dose was evaluated by RESRAD Ver. 6.3 and RESRAD BUILD Ver.3.3 computing code for radiological assessments of the general public. Derived clearance level by the result of assessments for the exposure dose of the general public is 0.1071Bq/g (3.5% enriched uranium) for landfill and $0.05515Bq/cm^2$ (5% enriched uranium) for recycling/reuse respectively. Also, residual radioactivity of concrete waste after decontamination was investigated in this study. The result of surface activity is $0.01Bq/cm^2\;for\;{\alpha}-emitter$ and the result of radionuclide analysis for taken concrete samples from surface of concrete waste is 0.0297Bq/g for concentration of $^{238}U$, below 2w/o for enrichment of $^{235}U$ and 0.0089Bq/g for artificial contamination of $^{238}U$ respectively. Therefore, radiological hazard of concrete waste by self-disposal as landfill and recycling/reuse is below clearance level to comply with clearance criterion provided for Notice No.2001-30 of the MOST and Korea Atomic Energy Act.

• Journal of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology(JNFCWT)
• /
• v.16 no.4
• /
• pp.473-478
• /
• 2018

Radioactive aerosol generated in cutting and melting work during the NPP decommissioning process can cause internal exposure to body through workers' breath. Thus, it is necessary to assess worker internal exposure due to the radioactive aerosol during decommissioning. The actually measured value of the working environment is needed for accurate assessment of internal exposure, but if it is difficult to actually measure that value, the internal exposure dose can be estimated through recommended values such as the fraction of amount of intake and the size of particles suggested by the International Committee on Radiological Protection (ICRP). As for the selection of particle size, this study applied a value of $5{\mu}m$, which is the size of particles considering the worker recommended by the ICRP. As for the amount of generation, the amount of intake was estimated using data on the mass of aerosol generated in a melting facility at a site in Kozloduy, Bulgaria. In addition, using these data, this study calculated the level of radioactivity in the worker's body and stool and conducted an assessment of internal exposure using the BiDAS computer code. The internal exposure dose of Type M was 0.0341 mSv, that of Type S was 0.0909 mSv. The two types of absorption showed levels that were 0.17% and 0.45% of the domestic annual dose limit, respectively.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
• /
• v.45 no.2
• /
• pp.53-68
• /
• 2020

Background: International organizations such as the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR) reported public exposure doses due to radionuclides released in the Fukushima nuclear accident a few years after the event. However, the reported doses were generally overestimated due to conservative assumptions such as a longer stay in deliberate areas designated for evacuation than the actual stay. After these reports had been published, more realistic dose values were reported by Japanese scientists. Materials and Methods: The present paper reviews those reports, including the most recently published articles; and summarizes estimated effective doses (external and internal) and issues related to their estimation. Results and Discussion: External dose estimation can be categorized as taking two approaches-estimation from ambient dose rate and peoples' behavior patterns-and measurements using personal dosimeters. The former approach was useful for estimating external doses in an early stage after the accident. The first 4-month doses were less than 2 mSv for most (94%) study subjects. Later on, individual doses came to be monitored by personal dosimeter measurements. On the basis of these measurements, the estimated median annual external dose was reported to be < 1 mSv in 2011 for 22 municipalities of Fukushima Prefecture. Internal dose estimation also can be categorized as taking two approaches: estimation from whole-body counting and estimation from monitoring of environmental samples such as radioactivity concentrations in food and drinking water. According to results by the former approach, committed effective dose due to ¹³⁴Cs and ¹³⁷Cs could be less than 0.1 mSv for most residents including those from evacuated areas. Conclusion: Realistic doses estimated by Japanese scientists indicated that the doses reported by WHO and UNSCEAR were generally overestimated. Average values for the first-year effective doses for residents in two affected areas (Namie Town and Iitate Village) were not likely to reach 10 mSv, the lower end of the doses estimated by WHO.

• Proceedings of the Korean Nuclear Society Conference
• /
• 1996.11a
• /
• pp.183-190
• /
• 1996

Leak-before-break(LBB) approach has been shown to be both cost and risk effective by reducing maintenance cost and occupational exposure when applied to high energy piping in nuclear power plants. For Korean Next Generation Reactor(KNGR) development, LBB is considered for the Main Steam Line(MSL) piping inside containment. Unlike the reactor coolant piping leakages which can be detected by particulate and gaseous radiation monitoring, main steam line leak detection systems must be based on principles that do not involve radioactivity. Ceramics are widely used as humidity sensor materials which can be further developed for nuclear applications. In this paper, we describe the progress in the development of ceramic humidity sensors for use with the main steam lines of KNGR.

• Resources Recycling
• /
• v.10 no.1
• /
• pp.56-65
• /
• 2001

Chemical decontamination techniques have been employed to reuse the high cost check valves contaminated with radioactivity and to reduce the radiation exposure during the inspection and maintenance work of safety injection system containing check valves. After chemical decontamination, an ultrasonic treatment was conducted to remove the fine solid particles retained in the crevices of check valves. The decontamination process conditions and the amount of chemical reagents were determined from the results of a pre-test, using the (list arm holder. The decontamination factors (DF), estimated from the activity in the solution, ranged from 14.5 to 18.5 corresponding to the activity removal of 93-95ft. The corrosion test data indicated that the general corrosion rate during a chemical decontamination-ultrasonic treatment process are low for type 304 S tainless steel, Inconel -600 and Stellite-6 materials $ (2.1\times10^{-2}$ $6.0\times10^{-2}$ and$ 1.7\times10^{-2}$ mil, respectively).

• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
• /
• v.15 no.4
• /
• pp.415-427
• /
• 2021

Korea Institute of Radiological and Medical Sciences has provided various beam irradiation services to researchers using a 50 MeV cyclotron beam line. In particular, since the neutron beam service uses the nuclear reaction between protons and beryllium, the possibility of activation of the irradiated sample increases by using a high current. In this study, MCNP 6.2 and FISPACT-II 4.0 were used to evaluate the possible activation during the 35 MeV 20 ㎂ neutron beam service, which is preferred by the researchers. As a result of the calculation, if the iron, copper, and tungsten samples were irradiated for more than 1 hour, long-lived radioisotopes were produced and their radioactivity exceeded the standard level for self-disposal. Under the conditions of 2 hours of daily irradiation, no activation occurred in the building materials, and the internal exposure of workers due to air activation inside the irradiation room was very insignificant. And when this air was discharged to environment, the radioactivity including this air was also satisfied the emission standard.

• Journal of the Korea Convergence Society
• /
• v.13 no.4
• /
• pp.373-381
• /
• 2022

The Fukushima nuclear power plant water spill caused by the Great East Japan Earthquake in March 2011 raised fears about radiation exposure through consumption of radioactively contaminated seafood. The Korean government banned importing agricultural and fishery products from eight prefectures near Fukushima, but the related news were continuously reported partly due to the WTO dispute with Japan, which seems to have aggravated consumers' anxiety about seafood. In this study, data on daily purchases of products for three years (2018-2020) were collected and the effect of Japanese radiation-related news on domestic consumers' purchases of seafood was estimated using a polynomial lag distributed model. As a result of the analysis, it was found that radiation-related news had a statistically significant negative effect on the purchase of seafood on the 5th and 6th days after exposure to consumers through the media. It captures the carryover effect in which consumers' perceptions are reflected in the purchase of seafood after exposure to related news.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
• /
• v.34 no.1
• /
• pp.37-42
• /
• 2009

Whole body counters (WBCs) are used to monitor radiation workers for internal contamination of radionuclides at domestic nuclear power plants (NPPs). A WBC is a scintillation detector using sodium iodide (NaI) and provides the identification of inhaled radionuclide and the measurement of its internal radioactivity in a short time. However, it is often possible to estimate external contamination as internal contamination due to radionuclides attached to the skin of radiation workers and this leads to an excessively conservative estimation of radioactive contamination. In this study, several experiments using a WBC and the Korean humanoid phantom were performed to suggest the more systematic method of discrimination between external and internal contamination. Furthermore, a WBC geometry experiment was conducted to suggest the optimal WBC geometry in consideration of deposited areas inside the body for dominant radionuclides at NPPs. The procedure of measurement and estimation of internal radioactivity for radiation workers at NPPs was improved on the basis of experimental results. Thus, it is expected to prevent from estimating internal exposure dose conservatively owing to the application of accurate whole body counting program to NPPs.