• 방사성폐기물학회지
• /
• 제21권3호
• /
• pp.419-425
• /
• 2023

The Radiation and Decommissioning Laboratory of Central Research Institute (CRI) of Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power Co. (KHNP) performs research to technically support the effective management of radiological hazards to avoid risks to civilians, the workers, and the environment from the radiological risks. The laboratory mainly consists of three technical groups: decommissioning and SF technology group, radiation and chemistry group, and radwaste and environment group. The groups carry out various R&D such as decommissioning, spent fuel management, radiation protection, water chemistry management, and radioactive waste management. The laboratory also technically supports the calibration of radiometric instruments as a Korea Laboratory Accreditation Scheme (KOLAS), approval for decommissioning, guidance for radioactive waste management, state-of-the-art technology evaluations, and technology transfer.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
• /
• 제41권3호
• /
• pp.291-300
• /
• 2016

Background: It is necessary to assess radiation dose to workers due to inhalation of airborne particulates containing naturally occurring radioactive materials (NORM) to ensure radiological safety required by the Natural Radiation Safety Management Act. The objective of this study is to develop an internal dose assessment procedure for workers at industries using raw materials containing natural radionuclides. Materials and Methods: The dose assessment procedure was developed based on harmonization, accuracy, and proportionality. The procedure includes determination of dose assessment necessity, preliminary dose estimation, airborne particulate sampling and characterization, and detailed assessment of radiation dose. Results and Discussion: The developed dose assessment procedure is as follows. Radioactivity concentration criteria to determine dose assessment necessity are $10Bq{\cdot}g^{-1}$ for $^{40}K$ and $1Bq{\cdot}g^{-1}$ for the other natural radionuclides. The preliminary dose estimation is performed using annual limit on intake (ALI). The estimated doses are classified into 3 groups ( < 0.1 mSv, 0.1-0.3 mSv, and > 0.3 mSv). Air sampling methods are determined based on the dose estimates. Detailed dose assessment is performed using air sampling and particulate characterization. The final dose results are classified into 4 different levels ( < 0.1 mSv, 0.1-0.3 mSv, 0.3-1 mSv, and > 1 mSv). Proper radiation protection measures are suggested according to the dose level. The developed dose assessment procedure was applied for NORM industries in Korea, including coal combustion, phosphate processing, and monazite handing facilities. Conclusion: The developed procedure provides consistent dose assessment results and contributes to the establishment of optimization of radiological protection in NORM industries.

• 방사성폐기물학회지
• /
• 제15권2호
• /
• pp.181-189
• /
• 2017

방사성금속폐기물의 관리 옵션들을 안전성, 경제성, 작업자 피폭, 부피 감용 등의 선별 기준을 적용하여 비교 평가하였다. 원전 해체로부터 발생하는 금속폐기물의 관리 옵션에는 무구속 방출, 제한적 재사용, 그리고 직접 처분이 있다. 고려된 각각의 옵션들은 금속폐기물의 절단과 용융에 의한 부피감용을 수반한다. AHP기법을 적용하여 각 옵션들의 순위를 부여하였다. 방사성금속폐기물을 용융하여 금속 잉곳을 제조한 후 제한적 재이용 또는 무구속 방출하는 방안이 가장 효율적인 옵션으로 도출되었다.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
• /
• 제53권5호
• /
• pp.1519-1523
• /
• 2021

Radioactive iodine (¹³¹I) released from nuclear power plants has been a critical environmental concern for workers. The effective trapping of radioactive iodine isotopes from the off-gas stream generated from nuclear facilities is an important issue in radioactive waste treatment systems evaluation. Numerous studies on retaining methyl iodide (CH₃I¹³¹) by impregnated activated carbons under the high content of moisture have been extensively studied so far. But there have been no good results on how to remove methyl iodide at high humid conditions up to now. A new challenge is to introduce other promising impregnating chemical agents that are able to uptake enough radioactive methyl iodide under high humid conditions. In order to develop a good removal efficiency to control radioiodine gas generated from a high humid process, activated carbons (ACs) impregnated with triethylene diamine (TEDA) and qinuclidine (QUID) were prepared. In addition, the removal efficiencies of the activated carbons (ACs) under humid conditions up to 95% RH were evaluated by applying the standard method specified in ASTM-D3808. Quinuclidine impregnated activated carbon showed a much higher decontamination factor above 1,000, which is enough to meet the regulation index for the iodine filters in nuclear power plants (NPPs).

• 대한방사선기술학회지:방사선기술과학
• /
• 제35권2호
• /
• pp.141-149
• /
• 2012

최근 최첨단 핵의학 영상기술의 발달로 임상적 이용이 증가되어 방사선 선원을 취급하는 핵의학과 작업종사자의 몸통 부위와 손 부위에 노출되는 외부 피폭선량을 평가하고 검사 빈도가 높은 전신 뼈검사(Whole body Bone Scan)와 양전자 단층촬영(PET/CT)시 방사선 선원($^{99m}Tc$-HDP, $^{18}F$-FDG)의 취급 및 검사에 따른 손 부위 피폭선량을 측정하고자 한다. 방사선 선원 취급 시 방호구 착용 및 손 부위를 측정 할 수 있는 선량계 보유 여부를 알아보기 위해 4개의 의료기관에 설문 하였다. 방사선 선원을 직접 분주하고 주사하는 숙련된 작업종사자의 가슴과 약지손가락에 열형광 선량계을 착용하여 누적된 외부 방사선 선량을 측정하고 손 부위의 외부 방사선량 측정을 위해 구간별 일일 방사선 선원으로부터 노출되는 선량과 시간을 포켓도시메터를 이용하여 각각 측정 하였다. 인천광역시 4개 의료기관을 대상으로 조사한 결과 손 부위의 방사선 피폭선량 측정기를 구비한 의료기관은 1곳을 제외한 3곳은 구비하지 않았고 차폐기구 사용은 방사선 선원으로부터 몸통을 보호하기 위해 차폐기구를 사용한 곳이 대부분 이었고, 일부 의료기관에서는 사용하지 않는 곳도 있었다. 방사선 선원을 직접 분배하고 투여하는 핵의학과 작업종사자의 손 부위 외부피폭 선량은 몸통부위보다 약 2배 이상 많은 선량을 받았고, 검사 빈도가 높은 전신 뼈 검사와 양전자 단층촬영 시 각 구간별 외부피폭 선량을 보면 방사성의약품 합성 및 분배용기 장착, 분배, 투여, 이동 순으로 각각 나타났다. 또한 방사선 선원 투여시 방호구 착용 전/후 손 부위의 피폭선량을 측정한 결과 통계적 유의한 차이가 있었다. 연구결과 작업종사자의 유효선량에는 못 미치지만 비 작업종사자보다 비교적 높은 선량을 받고 있어 방사선 선원을 근거리에서 노출되는 작업종사자는 안전관리 규정을 준수하고 손 부위 선량계(Ring TLD)를 착용하여 방사선 선원으로부터 피폭 저감을 위한 활동을 하여야 한다.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
• /
• 제55권5호
• /
• pp.1830-1837
• /
• 2023

The thermal cutting of contaminated or activated metals during decommissioning nuclear power plants inevitably results in the release of radioactive aerosol. Since radioactive aerosols are pernicious particles that contribute to the internal dose of workers, air conditioning units with a HEPA filter are used to remove radioactive aerosols. However, a HEPA filter cannot be used permanently. This study evaluates the efficiency and lifetime of filters in actual metal cutting condition using a plasma arc cutter and a high-resolution aerosol detector. The number concentration and size distribution of aerosols from 6 nm to 10 ㎛ were measured on both the upstream and downstream sides of the filter. The total aerosol removal efficiency of HEPA filter satisfies the standard of removing at least 99.97% of 0.3 ㎛ airborne particles, even if the pressure drop increases due to dust feeding load. The pressure drop and particle size removal efficiency at 0.3 ㎛ of the HEPA filter were found to increase with repeated cutting experiments. By contrast, the efficiency of used HEPA filter reduced in removing nano-sized aerosols by up to 79.26%. Altogether, these results can be used to determine the performance guidance and replacement frequency of HEPA filters used in nuclear power plants.

• 방사선산업학회지
• /
• 제18권2호
• /
• pp.147-153
• /
• 2024

Radioactive liquid waste generated during operation and overhaul is collected and reused through the radioactive liquid waste treatment system and continuous monitoring system in the nuclear power plant or discharged to the outside if it satisfies the limit within the control and monitoring. However, there are concerns about boric acid management, which controls the power output of nuclear power plants in radioactive liquid waste. Due to the behavior of boric acid, it is difficult to remove it in the existing liquid radwaste system, and the concentration of boric acid water discharged tends to be higher than the natural state of 5 ppm, so additional facilities should be considered. Therefore, this study aims to evaluate the radiological effects of radioactive waste treatment facilities that are under development and use them as a basis for managing worker exposure and evaluating the safety of facilities in the future.

• 한국유전체학회:학술대회논문집
• /
• 한국유전체학회 2005년도 The 14th Korea Genome Conference
• /
• pp.65-65
• /
• 2005

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
• /
• 제53권11호
• /
• pp.3505-3516
• /
• 2021

During nuclear facility decommissioning, workers are continuously exposed to high-level radiation. Hence, adequate path planning is critical to protect workers from unnecessary radiation exposure. This work discusses recent development in radioactive path planning and the algorithms recommended for the task. Specifically, we review the conventional methods for nuclear decommissioning path planning, analyze the techniques utilized in developing algorithms, and enumerate the decision factors that should be considered to optimize path planning algorithms. As a major contribution, we present the quantitative performance comparison of different algorithms utilized in solving path planning problems in nuclear decommissioning and highlight their merits and drawbacks. Also, we discuss techniques and critical consideration necessary for efficient application of robots and robotic path planning algorithms in nuclear facility decommissioning. Moreover, we analyze the influence of obstacles and the environmental/radioactive source dynamics on algorithms' efficiency. Finally, we recommend future research focus and highlight critical improvements required for the existing approaches towards a safer and cost-effective nuclear-decommissioning project.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
• /
• 제54권2호
• /
• pp.442-448
• /
• 2022

Intermediate-level radioactive waste (ILW) is not subject to legal approval for cave disposal in Korea. To solve this problem, a spent resin treatment device that separates ¹⁴C-containing resin from zeolite/activated carbon and desorbs ¹⁴C through a microwave device has been developed. In this study, we evaluated the radiological safety of the operators performing repair work in the event of a failure in such a device treating 1 ton of spent resin mixture per day. Based on the safety evaluation results, it is possible to formulate a design plan that can ensure the safety of workers while developing a commercialized device. When each component of the resin treatment device can be repaired from the outside, the maximum and minimum allowable repair times are calculated as 263.2 h and 27.7 h for the ¹⁴C-detached resin storage tank and zeolite/activated carbon storage tank, respectively. For at least 6 h per quarter, the worker's annual dose limit remains within 50 mSv/year; further, over 5 years, it remained within 100 mSv. At least 6 h of repair time per quarter is considered, under conservative conditions, to verify the radiological safety of the worker during repair work within that time.