Analysis of events reported from industrial radiation facilities

Abstract

Radiation sources have multifarious societal applications in medical, industrial and research. Prevention of any untoward event is one of the important safety principles to be considered during the handling of radiation sources. However, some unusual events may occur during the handling of radiation sources, which may be attributed to various factors such as equipment malfunction, human error etc. Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) has a well-established mechanism for event reporting by the stakeholders. An analysis of the events reported by the facilities handling radiation sources for industrial radiography, nucleonic gauges and well-logging applications has been carried out. Analysis shows that the major contributing factors for reported events in industrial radiography are human error and equipment failure, whereas for nucleonic gauges and well logging facilities dominating factors are security-related issues and external (environmental) factors respectively. These reported events have not led to any serious accident, however, reported by the facilities as deviations from standard operating procedures are observed.