Albedo neutron dosimetry in Germany: regulations and performance

ASSESSMENT OF NEUTRON HP(10) USING WORKPLACE CORRECTION FACTORS OBTAINED THROUGH MONTE CARLO SIMULATION FOR ALNOR ALBEDO DOSEMETER

Albedo dosemeters for neutron individual monitoring are used worldwide and their response to the same dose can vary by more than one order of magnitude, depending on the neutron workplace spectrum. Two-component albedo dosemeters use two pairs of TLDs, one pair to measure incident neutrons (i) and another to measure albedo neutrons (a), used to corrections to the neutron HP(10). A Workplace Correction Factor (WCF) as a function of the i/a ratio can be plotted from experimental or simulated measurements. This paper uses a Monte Carlo MCNPX simulation of the Alnor albedo dosemeter response to plot WCF × i/a curves for several neutron fields. Experimental results were used to validate the simulation. The use of the proposed curves to calculate WCF can reduce the inaccuracies of the neutron dose assessment for different neutron fields of several facilities. However, it is necessary to be careful with the uncertainties of the i/a values.

Review of Land Surface Albedo: Variance Characteristics, Climate Effect and Management Strategy

Surface albedo plays a controlling role in the surface energy budget, and albedo-induced radiative forcing has a significant impact on climate and environmental change (e.g., global warming, snow and ice melt, soil and vegetation degradation, and urban heat islands (UHIs)). Several existing review papers have summarized the algorithms and products of surface albedo as well as climate feedback at certain surfaces, while an overall understanding of various land types remains insufficient, especially with increasing studies on albedo management methods regarding mitigating global warming in recent years. In this paper, we present a comprehensive literature review on the variance pattern of surface albedo, the subsequent climate impact, and albedo management strategies. The results show that using the more specific term “surface albedo” is recommended instead of “albedo” to avoid confusion with similar terms (e.g., planetary albedo), and spatiotemporal changes in surface albedo can indicate subtle changes in the energy budget, land cover, and even the specific surface structure. In addition, the close relationships between surface albedo change and climate feedback emphasize the important role of albedo in climate simulation and forecasting, and many albedo management strategies (e.g., the use of retroreflective materials (RRMs)) have been demonstrated to be effective for climate mitigation by offsetting CO2 emissions. In future work, climate effects and management strategies regarding surface albedo at a multitude of spatiotemporal resolutions need to be systematically evaluated to promote its application in climate mitigation, where a life cycle assessment (LCA) method considering both climate benefits and side effects (e.g., thermal comfort) should be followed.

A NEW TL-DOS NEUTRON DOSEMETER FOR MEASUREMENTS OF THE PERSONAL DOSE EQUIVALENT HP(10)

A new thermoluminescence albedo dosemeter with improved properties is developed as part of the TL-DOS project. The dosemeter measures the neutron and photon whole-body dose of radiation workers. The TL-DOS neutron dosemeter is presented and its results of well-known field measurements as well as field calibrations are shown. Its advantages, such as its potential to measure the high-linear energy transfer peaks, its improved detector sensitivity and long detector lifetime, are explained. The new dosemeter is compared to a thermoluminescence albedo dosemeter already used in routine dosimetry in Germany.

NEUTRON WORKPLACE SPECTROMETRY (ENERGY AND DIRECTION) USING TL DETECTORS: FIRST APPROACH AND RESPONSE FUNCTIONS

The response of albedo dosemeters depends on the energy and angle of the incident neutron radiation. For their use as personal dosemeters, a field-calibration factor has to be applied. The presently used single sphere method for field calibration can be extended and optimised by putting five albedo dosemeters on the surface of a polyethylene sphere and two TL cards in the centre. To investigate the potential of this extension, reference measurements and Monte Carlo calculations were performed and the fluence response of the detectors at different positions on and within the sphere was determined. Calculated response functions demonstrate that information on the energy and directional distribution of neutron fluence can be extracted with this simple set-up for unknown neutron fields.

FIELD CALIBRATION OF A TLD ALBEDO DOSEMETER IN THE HIGH-ENERGY NEUTRON FIELD OF CERF

The new albedo dosemeter-type AWST-TL-GD 04 has been calibrated in the CERF neutron field (Cern-EU high-energy Reference Field). This type of albedo dosemeter is based on thermoluminescent detectors (TLDs) and used by the individual monitoring service of the Helmholtz Zentrum München (AWST) since 2015 for monitoring persons, who are exposed occupationally against photon and neutron radiation. The motivation for this experiment was to gain a field specific neutron correction factor Nn for workplaces at high-energy particle accelerators. Nn is a dimensionless factor relative to a basic detector calibration with 137Cs and is used to calculate the personal neutron dose in terms of Hp(10) from the neutron albedo signal. The results show that the sensitivity of the albedo dosemeter for this specific neutron field is not significantly lower as for fast neutrons of a radionuclide source like 252Cf. The neutron correction factor varies between 0.73 and 1.16 with a midrange value of 0.94. The albedo dosemeter is therefore appropriate to monitor persons, which are exposed at high-energy particle accelerators.

DOSIMETRIC PROPERTIES OF THE NEW TLD ALBEDO NEUTRON DOSEMETER AWST-TL-GD 04

A new official albedo dosemeter based on thermoluminescent detectors has been introduced in 2015 by the individual monitoring service of the Helmholtz Zentrum München for monitoring persons who are exposed occupationally against photon and neutron radiation. To enhance the sensitivity for fast neutrons, a new badge with an enlarged albedo window has been developed at TU Dresden. The properties of the new albedo dosemeter are discussed, and the results of official intercomparisons and field calibrations are shown.

FIELD CORRECTION FACTORS FOR PERSONAL NEUTRON DOSEMETERS

A field-dependent correction factor can be obtained by comparing the readings of two albedo neutron dosemeters fixed in opposite directions on a polyethylene sphere to the H*(10) reading as determined with a thermal neutron detector in the centre of the same sphere. The work shows that the field calibration technique as used for albedo neutron dosemeters can be generalised for all kind of dosemeters, since H*(10) is a conservative estimate of the sum of the personal dose equivalents Hp(10) in two opposite directions. This result is drawn from reference values as determined by spectrometers within the EVIDOS project at workplace of nuclear installations in Europe. More accurate field-dependent correction factors can be achieved by the analysis of several personal dosimeters on a phantom, but reliable angular responses of these dosemeters need to be taken into account.