Radiation Safety Refresher Course

29-31 August 2018

EEI Corporation
#12 Manggahan St., Bagumbayan, Quezon City

Nuclear Training Center

Technology Diffusion Division
Philippine Nuclear Research Institute

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 Objectives

1. To demonstrate understanding in radiation

quantities used in radiation protection and their
measurement units and the relations between
them;
2. To determine when to use these quantities and
convert units from one to another; and
3. To perform related calculations.
 Introduction

Radiation is all
around us and
is a part of our
everyday lives.

But what exactly

is it and what
does it do to our
body?

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Introduction

4
 Introduction
• Radiation is an energy propagated through space in
the form of electromagnetic waves or moving
particles.
• Classification of Radiation:
– Non-ionizing Radiation
• Does not carry sufficient energy to ionize atoms or molecules
but may have enough energy to excite molecules and atoms
causing them to vibrate faster.
• Its energy is lower than the ionization potential of matter.

– Ionizing Radiation
• Radiation having enough energy to knock electrons out of their
orbits around atoms, upsetting the electron/proton balance and
giving the atom a positive charge. Electrically charged molecules
and atoms are called ions.
• This effect can cause damage to living tissue.
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 Introduction
• Man benefits greatly from the use of radiation
in medicine, industry, research, and power
generation.
• But people of various ages and in diverse
situations could be exposed to radiation.

The objective of radiation

protection is to balance the risks
and benefits from activities that
involve radiation.

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 Introduction

Quantity Unit
A selected reference
Used for the
sample of a quantity
quantitative description
with which other
of physical phenomena
quantities of the same
or objects
kind are compared

Quantities can be multiplied or divided by one another resulting in

other quantities. Thus, all quantities can be derived from a set of base
quantities. The resulting quantities are called derived quantities.

The PNRI adopts the International Commission on

Radiation Units and Measurements recommendation
on the use of the International System of Units (SI).
 Radiation Quantities
RADIOMETRIC QUANTITIES
Quantities used to describe a radiation field (in terms of
particles or rays)
₋ Particle Fluence, Energy

DOSIMETRIC QUANTITIES
Quantities used to describe the interaction of ionizing
radiation with matter
₋ KERMA, Absorbed Dose, Equivalent Dose, Effective Dose

OPERATIONAL QUANTITIES
Quantities intended to give reasonable approximations to
equivalent and effective doses
₋ Ambient dose equivalent {H*(d)}, Personal dose equivalent
{Hp(d)}
Typical Multiples and Prefixes

Prefix Symbol Factor

nano n x 10-9
micro μ x 10-6
milli m x 10-3
kilo k x 103
mega M x 106
giga G x 109
tera T x 1012
peta P x 1015
 Radioactivity or Activity, A
The rate of decay, or transformation, of a radionuclide.
The number of atoms that decay per unit time.
The unit of activity is Becquerel (Bq). Named after Henri Becquerel.
1 Becquerel (Bq) = 1 disintegration per second (1 s-1)

The traditional unit of activity is Curie (Ci), originally ascribed to 1 g

of 226Ra. Named after Marie Curie.
1 Curie (Ci) = 37 billion disintegrations per second

Low Activity High Activity

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 Radiation Field

Radiation field is used to characterize in a quantitative way

the radiation in space consisting of particles.

There are two very general quantities associated with a

radiation field:
₋ the number of particles
₋ the energy transported by the particles (which is also
denoted as the radiant energy)
Particle Fluence
 Energy
Energy (excluding rest energy) of particles that are emitted,
transferred, or received.

SI unit – Joule (J)

Electron-volt (eV) – the

amount of energy gained by an
electron when it is accelerated
thru a potential difference of 1
volt

Energy can be expressed in

keV or MeV
1 eV = 1.60 x 10-19 J
Dosimetric Quantities
 Introduction to Dosimetric
Quantities
The effects of radiation on matter depend on the
radiation field and on the interactions between
radiation and matter.

Dosimetric quantities are products of radiometric

quantities and interaction coefficients.

Radiation interacts with matter in a series of processes

in which particle energy is converted and finally
deposited in matter.
KERMA, K
KERMA, K
Exposure, X
Absorbed Dose, D
 Absorbed Dose, D
Units
RAD (Radiation Absorbed Dose)
• Old, but still commonly used.
• 1 rad = 100 ergs/g
Gray (Gy)
• The SI unit is J kg-1 and the special name is gray (Gy)
• It is defined as the absorption of one joule of radiation
energy per kilogram of matter
• 1 Gy = 1 Joule per kilogram (J/kg)
• 1 Gy = 100 rad
• Gy can be used for any type of radiation.
• Gy does not describe the biological effects of the
different radiations.
8/25/2018
 Exercise 1

Convert the following absorbed dose and

dose rate:

1) 0.5 mrad to Gy

2) 3.5 µGyh-1 to radh-1

1 Gy = 100 rad
 Absorbed dose vs Exposure

Relation between absorbed dose and exposure

1 roentgen = 0.869 rad in air
1 roentgen = 0.96 rad in tissue

Note:
In many cases, exposure in R and absorbed dose in rad
have almost the same value (medium is always specified)
 Absorbed dose vs KERMA
• Kerma measures the amount of energy that
is transferred from photons to electrons per unit mass at
a certain position.
• Absorbed dose, on the other hand, measures the
energy deposited in a unit mass at a certain position.

• Kerma describes the first step in energy dissipation by

indirectly ionizing radiation; energy transfer to charged
particle.
• Absorbed dose describes the energy imparted to matter
by all kinds of ionizing radiation, but delivered by the
charged particles
Equivalent Dose, H
 Radiation Weighting Factor, WR
Radiation weighting factor is a dimensionless variable multiplied to
the absorbed dose (D) to provide an estimate of relative human hazard
of low level exposure from different types and energies of radiation

Type and Energy Range Radiation Weighting Factor (WR)

α particles, all energies 20

β particles, all energies 1
γ & x-rays, all energies 1
Neutrons: < 10 keV 5
10 keV– 100 keV 10
> 100 keV – 2 20
MeV 10
> 2 MeV – 20 MeV 5
> 20 MeV
 Exercise 2
• Convert the following absorbed doses (D) in a
particular organ or tissue to equivalent doses (H):

1) 5 mGy from α – particle

2) 5 mGy from β – particle
3) 5 mGy from γ – rays

Which of these would be the most damaging to organs

or tissues?
Effective Dose, E
 Tissue Weighting Factor, WT
Tissue weighting factor is a dimensionless multiplier used for radiation
protection purposes to account for the different sensitivities of different
organs and tissues to the induction of stochastic effects of radiation.

Organ/Tissue WT Organ/Tissue WT
Bone marrow 0.12 Lung 0.12
Bladder 0.04 Liver 0.04

Bone surface 0.01 Oesophagus 0.04

Brain 0.01 Salivary Glands 0.01

Breast 0.12 Skin 0.01
Colon 0.12 Stomach 0.12
Gonads 0.08 Thyroid 0.04
Liver 0.05 Remainder 0.12
Tissue Weighting Factors (WT), ICRP Pub 103 (2007)
 Exercise 3
Calculate the effective dose resulting from
5 mSv equivalent dose to the ff organs/
tissues:

1) skin
2) thyroid
3) lung
4) gonads
 Collective Dose
An expression for the total radiation dose incurred by a
population, defined as the product of the number of
individuals exposed to a source and their average radiation
dose.
….. Or the sum of all individual doses.

Used to estimate the total health effects of a particular

procedure or process or in accidental release.

The collective dose is expressed in man-sieverts (man.Sv).

Collective Effective Dose
Committed Dose
 Physical quantities
• Fluence,
• Kerma, K Calculated using wR, wT,
• Absorbed dose, D and anthropomorphic
Calculated using Q(L) phantoms
and selected phantoms

Operational quantities Protection quantities

•Ambient dose equivalent, H*(d) Adequate • Organ absorbed dose, DT
•Directional dose equivalent, H’(d, ) Estimate • Organ equivalent dose, HT
•Personal dose equivalent, Hp(d) • Effective dose, E

Related by calibration and calculation

Conservative
approximation
Monitored quantities
Instrument responses
Operational Quantities
 Operational Quantities
Area monitoring generally characterizes
radiation fields with respect to their
relevance for radiation protection
measures
– Ambient dose equivalent, H*(d)
– Directional dose equivalent, H’(d)

Individual monitoring is used for determining the

individual exposure of persons, particularly occupationally
exposed
Normally monitored by a wearing a personal dosimeter
 Personal dose equivalent, Hp(d)
 Operational Quantities
The body related dose quantities (equivalent dose
and effective dose) are not directly measurable and,
therefore, cannot be used directly in radiation
protection monitoring.

Operational quantities are aimed at providing a

c o n s e r vat i ve e st i m ate fo r t h e va l u e o f t h e
protection quantities related to an exposure, or
potential exposure of persons under most irradiation
conditions.
 Operational Quantities

Exposure limits (ICRP 103) are given in terms of:

– Effective dose, E
– Equivalent dose to the skin, Hskin
– Equivalent dose to the lens of the eye, Heye lens
– Equivalent dose to the hands and feet
 Operational Quantities
Individual
Task Area Monitoring
Monitoring

Monitoring of Effective Ambient Dose Personal Dose

Dose, E Equivalent, H*(10) Equivalent, Hp (10)

Monitoring of Equivalent Directional Dose Personal Dose

Dose to Local Skin, Hskin Equivalent, H´(0.07) Equivalent,
Hp(0.07)
Monitoring of Equivalent Directional Dose Personal Dose
Dose to the Lens of the Equivalent, H´(3) Equivalent, Hp(3)
Eye, Hlens
Ambient Dose Equivalent (H*(d))
Mostly used to assess doses from
strongly penetrating radiation
where the recommended depth is
10 mm

Most radiation monitoring

instruments are calibrated in
terms of this quantity (as
recommended by the ICRP)

Reading on these monitors then

gives a reasonable approximation
to the effective dose
Directional Dose Equivalent (H’(d))
Suitable for area monitoring of fields
containing weakly penetrating
radiation where the depth is taken
as 0.07 mm (for skin) and 3 mm (for
the eye)

A radiation monitoring instrument

calibrated for this quantity gives us
an indication of the equivalent
dose in superficial tissue
Personal Dose Equivalent (Hp(d))
The quantity defined for both
strongly and weakly penetrating
radiation.
Dose equivalent in soft tissue below
a specified point on the body at a
depth, d mm
Depth can be taken as
 0.07 mm for skin
 3 mm for the eye for weakly
penetrating radiation
 10 mm for the whole body
exposed to strongly penetrating
radiation
Summary
 References
Code of PNRI Regulations Part 3, Standards for Protection Against Radiation,
Rev. 01. Official Gazette Volume 100, No. 36, September 6, 2004.

International Commission on Radiation Units and Measurements,

Fundamental Quantities And Units For Ionizing Radiation (Revised), October
2011, Published by Oxford University Press

Powerpoint presentations:
Radiation Dosimetry by Kristine Marie Romallosa
Revisions to ICRU Operational Quantities by Hertel, et. al. February 2016
Thank you.

E-mail:
ntc@pnri.dost.gov.ph

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