• Title/Summary/Keyword: Solid-state nuclear track detectors (SSNTDs)

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A Noticeable Change in Indoor Radon Levels After Platform Screen Doors Installation in Seoul Subway Station (스크린도어 설치 후 서울지하철역 라돈 농도의 변화 특성)

  • Jeon, Jae-Sik;Yoon, Jong-Cheol;Lee, Ho-Chan;Eom, Seok-Won;Chae, Young-Zoo
    • Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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    • v.28 no.1
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    • pp.59-67
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    • 2012
  • Platform screen doors (PSD) installed at 289 stations in Seoul metropolitan subway from November 2005 to December 2009, are expected to prevent death from a fall and improve air quality. In this study, we systematically surveyed changes in radon concentrations before and after PSD installation in Seoul metropolitan subway stations. By solid-state nuclear track detectors (SSNTD), the radon concentrations before and after the PSD installation were measured at 54 stations of 6 lines from 2 to 7 reported to have relatively high radon concentrations. Mean radon concentrations at platforms were decreased by approximately 56% from 121.7 Bq/$m^3$ to 54.0 Bq/$m^3$. Before PSD installation, mean radon concentrations were in the decreasing order for subway lines 7, 5, 6, 3, 4 and 2. On the other hand, after PSD installation the order was changed to 5, 6, 7, 3, 4 and 2. According to a radon map of Seoul metropolitan subway, the number of platforms where radon concentration over was 74 Bq/$m^3$ decreased from 38 to 12 after PSD installation.

Characterization of saturation of CR-39 detector at high alpha-particle fluence

  • Ghazaly, M. El;Hassan, Nabil M.
    • Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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    • v.50 no.3
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    • pp.432-438
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    • 2018
  • The occurrence of saturation in the CR-39 detector reduces and limits its detection dynamic range; nevertheless, this range could be extended using spectroscopic techniques and by measuring the net bulk rate of the saturated CR-39 detector surface. CR-39 detectors were irradiated by 1.5 MeV high alpha-particle fluence varying from $0.06{\times}10^8$ to $7.36{\times}10^8\;alphas/cm^2$ from Am-241 source; thereafter, they were etched in a 6.25N NaOH solution at a temperature of $70^{\circ}C$ for different durations. Net bulk etch rate measurement of the 1.5 MeV alpha-irradiated CR-39 detector surface revealed that rate increases with increasing etching time and reaches its maximum value at the end of the alpha-particle range. It is also correlated with the alpha-particle fluence. The measurements of UV-Visible (UV-Vis) absorbance at 500 and 600 nm reveal that the absorbance is linearly correlated with the fluence of alpha particles at the etching times of 2 and 4 hour. For extended etching times of 6, 10, and 14.5 hour, the absorbance is saturated for fluence values of $4.05{\times}10^8$, $5.30{\times}10^8$, and $7.36{\times}10^8\;alphas/cm^2$. These new methods pave the way to extend the dynamic range of polymer-based solid state nuclear track detectors (SSNTDs) in measurement of high fluence of heavy ions as well as in radiation dosimetry.

A Preliminary Investigation of Radon Concentration for Some Agricultural Greenhouses in Jeju Island (제주지역 일부 농업 시설 내 라돈 농도 예비 조사)

  • Kang, Tae-Woo;Song, Myeong-Han;Kim, Tae-Hyoung;Chang, Byung-Uck;Kim, Young-Jae;Kim, Geun-Ho;Park, Jae-Woo
    • Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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    • v.31 no.1
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    • pp.9-15
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    • 2012
  • BACKGROUND: A preliminary investigation of the radon ($^{222}Rn$) concentration has been conducted, employing solid-state nuclear-track detectors (SSNTD) and a continuous radon monitor (CRM), for fourteen randomly selected agricultural greenhouses in Jeju Island, where the underground-air was used for air conditioning and $CO_2$ supplement. METHODS AND RESULTS: The SSNTD was used to measure the average radon concentration for three months and the CRM was used for an instantaneous measurement. In order to obtain the radon concentration of a greenhouse, the SSNTDs were placed at a number of evenly distributed points inside the greenhouse and the mean of the measured values was taken. In addition, in order to assess the radon concentration of the underground-air itself, measurement was also made at the borehole of the underground-air in each agricultural facility, employing both the SSNTD and CRM. It is found that the radon concentration of the greenhouses ranges higher than those not using the underground-air and the average of Korean dwellings. While the radon concentration of most agricultural facilities is still lower than the reference level (1,000 Bq/$m^3$) recommended by the International Radiation Protection Committee (ICRP), three facilities at one site show higher concentrations than the reference level. The three-month-averaged radon concentration and the instantaneous radon concentration of the underground-air itself ranges 1,228- 5,259 and 3,322-17,900 Bq/$m^3$, respectively, and regional variation is more significant. CONCLUSION: From this results, radon concentration of the underground-air is assumed that it is associated with the geological characteristics and the boring depth of the region located of their.