Calculation of Radiological Dose due to Release of Tritium Oxides from Controlled Thermonuclear Reactors

Abstract

A method has been developed for determining doses to the public resulting from releases of tritium as tritiated water vapor or as tritiated lithium compounds. This method has been included in a computer model. This model uses the Gaussian dispersion method to predict distribution of tritium species in the downwind environment. Movement of tritium into biological systems is determined by treating these systems as a series of interacting water compartments. Dispersion and uptake calculations are applied to two sample sites to predict health effects. Consequences predicted by the model are linear and can be scaled to any release quantity. For a continuous release of tritium at a rate of 10 Ci/day, the calculated dose would be 8 mrem/yr at the site boundary, with a dose commitment of 10 to 100 man-rem/yr within an 80-km radius. For an instantaneous release of 10/sup 8/ Ci, the calculated dose would be as high as 2200 rem at the site boundary, contributing a population dose of 0.6 to 2.6 x 10/sup 6/ man-rem within 80 km.