Actual Issues on Radiological Assessment for Events with Liquid Radioactive Materials Spills

Abstract

According to the International Scale of Nuclear and Radiological Events INES, accidents involving liquid radioactive material (LRM) spills, depending on the magnitude of the atmospheric release and the corresponding radiological consequences, can theoretically be assigned different levels of danger (from level “0” Deviation” “to “7” Major accident”). This study was conducted mainly on the publications of leading scientists dealing with LRM spills, available incident databases, and descriptions of relevant software. An analysis and classification of events with LMR spill that occurred at nuclear facilities in different countries have been carried out. This made it possible to identify the main causes of such emergencies, the characteristic thermodynamic processes that occur during these situations, the routes of distribution of radioactive substances, the exposure conditions, and the extent of potential contamination. After reviewing the existing tools, approaches, and requirements for radiological impact assessment for the group of accidents with LMR spills, it can be stated that they do not comprehensively cover the features and have a number of shortcomings in modeling the course of accidents with spills of liquid radioactive media. Analysis and systematization of modern scientific approaches show that the problems of estimating the radiological impact of emissions in such accidents remain relevant and require further research.