Fast determination of 90Sr in urine samples and internal dose evaluation in emergency situations.

Evaluation of a portable OSL/IRSL reader for radiation dose assessment of NaCl pellets – In situ individualised screening during R/N emergencies

This article describes the International Radiation Monitoring Information System (IRMIS) which was developed by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) with the goal to provide Competent Authorities, the IAEA and other international organizations with a client server based web application to share and visualize large quantities of radiation monitoring data. The data maps the areas of potential impact that can assist countries to take appropriate protective actions in an emergency. Ever since the Chernobyl nuclear power plant accident in April of 19861 European Community (EC) has worked towards collecting routine environmental radiological monitoring data from national networked monitoring systems. European Radiological Data Exchange Platform (EURDEP) was created in 19952 to that end – to provide radiation monitoring data from most European countries reported in nearly real-time. During the response operations for the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant accident (March 2011) the IAEA Incident and Emergency Centre (IEC) managed, harmonized and shared the large amount of data that was being generated from different organizations. This task underscored the need for a system which allows sharing large volumes of radiation monitoring data in an emergency. In 2014 EURDEP started the submission of the European radiological data to the International Radiation Monitoring Information System (IRMIS) as a European Regional HUB for IRMIS. IRMIS supports the implementation of the Convention on Early Notification of a Nuclear Accident by providing a web application for the reporting, sharing, visualizing and analysing of large quantities of environmental radiation monitoring data during nuclear or radiological emergencies. IRMIS is not an early warning system that automatically reports when there are significant deviations in radiation levels or when values are detected above certain levels. However, the configuration of the visualization features offered by IRMIS may help Member States to determine where elevated gamma dose rate measurements during a radiological or nuclear emergency indicate that actions to protect the public are necessary. The data can be used to assist emergency responders determine where and when to take necessary actions to protect the public. This new web online tool supports the IAEA’s Unified System for Information Exchange in Incidents and Emergencies (USIE)3, an online tool where competent authorities can access information about all emergency situations, ranging from a lost radioactive source to a full-scale nuclear emergency.

The IAEA has developed the International Radiation Monitoring Information System (IRMIS), an international web- based application in support of the implementation of the Convention on Early Notification of a Nuclear Accident. IRMIS provides a mechanism for the reporting and visualization of large quantities of environmental radiation monitoring data during nuclear or radiological emergencies. The radiation monitoring data can be uploaded to IRMIS in the International Radiological Information Exchange (IRIX) format. A web interface has been designed in IRMIS through which authorized users may upload the reports of Emergency Data into IRMIS, either in IRIX format or using a pre-formatted spreadsheet template. These reports are subsequently reviewed and published on IRMIS by the IAEA Incident and Emergency Centre (IEC). IRIX is a technical standard developed by the IAEA in cooperation with experts from Member States and the European Commission (EC). It is designed to enable the development of interoperable systems and solutions for exchanging emergency information and data between organizations at both national and international level during a nuclear or radiological incident or emergency. IRIX is an open format developed by the IAEA based on the Extensible Markup Language (XML), which makes it both machine- and human-readable. It should be used to exchange radiological information between IAEA and RANET teams, or between any other two (or more) assisting parties, during a nuclear or radiological emergency. The IAEA has developed the IRIX format as the recommended standard to exchange information among emergency response organizations at national and international levels during a nuclear or radiological emergency. The standard covers the data content, the data format (XML), and the system interface specification. Data can include status information about a nuclear installation, information about any radioactive releases to the environment, information on protective actions taken or planned by affected countries, and environmental radiation monitoring data. The system interface specification (or web-service specification) enables organizations to interconnect their emergency information systems to automate their information exchange in an emergency. The IRIX standard allows the information to be processed quickly, summarized, and presented in an easily understood format: for example, on status boards in emergency response centres. Once the national system has been interconnected with a counterpart system, the information contained in reports in the IRIX format can be automatically exchanged via “machine-to-machine” transactions. These can replace or complement “operator-to-machine” or “operator-to-operator” information exchange, which is usually slower and not error-free. At present, US DOE/NNSA efforts to collect and share large quantities of radiological or nuclear emergency monitoring data are fragmented. The Emergency Response Group acquires data using multiple cell-nets, and communicates these data back to the Search Management Centre (SMC), which produces maps and briefing products. The RAP regions--which are vast--are using the RadResponder Network that is outside the scope of SMC and mainstream NNSA emergency response. The IAEA proposes to integrate all types of radiation data--survey, monitoring, environmental, and sampling — under one international umbrella, the International Radiation Monitoring Information System (IRMIS). The most significant restriction is that SMC is not a client server based system, whereas IRMIS is a distributed web- based application: it is managed by issuing user-level credentials with multi-level privileges. Unlike SMC, IRMIS is also independent of the origin and type of equipment used to collect the data (e.g. backpack, vehicle monitoring, or networked fixed-monitoring stations).

Ceramic based electronic component as retrospective radiation dosimeter

OSL dosimetry with table salt for mass screening of individual doses during radiological or nuclear emergencies

From the experience during radiation monitoring and data analysis of Fukushima Dai-ichi Accident it was learned that the large amount of data gathered during the nuclear emergency by multi-national organizations needs to be harmonized to speak in “one voice” regarding the evolving radiological status of the environment around the accident location. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)’s Incident and Emergency Centre (IEC) has introduced the International Radiological Information Exchange (IRIX) [1], a technical standard developed by the IAEA, in cooperation with experts from Member States and the European Commission (EC), meant to enable the development of interoperable systems and solutions for exchanging emergency information and data between organisations at both national and international levels during a nuclear or radiological emergency. IRIX works as the data format for the International Radiation Monitoring Information System (IRMIS) [2], a client server-based web application that provides users a platform to report and visualize large quantities of radiological monitoring data during nuclear and radiological emergencies. IRMIS routinely receives the radiation dose rate data from fixed monitoring stations from close to 40 Member States. The information reported and the tools provided within IRMIS may be used in the decisionmaking process related to the implementation of public protective actions and other response actions during a nuclear or radiological emergency. The IRIX standard comprises two parts: a standard data format and a standard web service interface definition. Among the first applications of the IRIX standards are the interconnection and enabling of automated information exchange between the IAEA’s Unified System for Information Exchange in Incidents and Emergencies (USIE) and the European Community Urgent Radiological Information Exchange system (WebECURIE) [3], and the interchange of environmental radiation monitoring data in the IAEA’s IRMIS. The IAEA-IEC has worked on several emergency radiation monitoring equipment like backpacks, vehicle mounted large sensitivity gamma radiation detectors and has converted the data reports produced by these detection systems into IRIX format so that they could be assimilated in to the IRMIS. The current project has developed interactive decision support not only in the area of public protection but also in optimizing resource allocation during radiological emergencies. One of the main challenges in coordinating a large scale nuclear emergency response is identifying progress of task allocation, sample collection and analysis for a smooth flow of data in response operations. Geographic record of this progress, in the form of a map, can assist in the optimization of resource allocation, and so ensure that demand for sample collector and laboratory services is matching the supply. The adoption of the IRIX format to package radiation monitoring data in a machine readable extensible mark-up language (XML) has reduced the time and human effort (and associated errors) drastically. The language can be universally applied to all types of radiation monitoring and environmental sampling systems. Coupled with the IRMIS system of data management, visualization and analysis tools, IRIX can help analysis of resource gaps (how to distribute monitoring resources most efficiently and effectively) and can become a very strong deployment tool for the Member States. Standardized emergency monitoring data reports from different operational monitoring equipment will go a long way in harmonizing radiation monitoring data acquisition and analysis at national levels to have a sustainable global impact. The ideal system, anticipated to support up to millions of entries of sample and monitoring data, optimizes the data query system and utilizes the least core information to quickly answer questions needed in decision making during emergencies. Incorporating the IRIX format can be an effective part of such new systems.

Calibration of a SPECT-CT gamma camera with child and adult thyroid-neck phantoms for in vivo monitoring of radioiodine in the exposed population in case of nuclear emergency

A comprehensive review of dose limits, triage systems and measurement tools for consequence management of nuclear and radiological emergencies

EURADOS intercomparison of age-dependent thyroid phantoms for thyroid monitoring in nuclear or radiological emergencies

Knowing the unknowns: Uncertainties during radiological emergencies

In the internal dose evaluation, the specific absorbed fraction (SAF) and S-value are calculated from the reference phantom based on Caucasian data. The differences in height and weight between Caucasian and Asian may lead to inaccurate dose estimation. In this study, we developed the Taiwanese reference phantoms. 40 volunteers were recruited. Magnetic resonance images (MRI) were obtained, and the contours of 15 organs were drawn. The Taiwanese reference man (TRM) and Taiwanese reference woman (TRW) were constructed. For the SAF calculation, the differences in the self-absorption SAF (self-SAF) between the TRM, TRW, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) adult phantom were less than 10% when the difference in organ mass was less than 20%. The average SAF from liver to pancreas of TRM was 38% larger than that of the ORNL adult phantom, and the result of TRW was 2.02 times higher than that of the ORNL adult phantom. For the S-value calculation, the ratios of TRW and ORNL adult phantom ranged from 0.91 to 1.57, and the ratios of TRM and ORNL adult phantom ranged from 1.04 to 2.29. The SAF and S-value results were dominantly affected by the height, weight, organ mass, and geometric relationship between organs. By using the TRM and TRW, the accuracy of internal dose evaluation can be increased for radiation protection and nuclear medicine.

The prompt response to emergency situations involving suspicion of intakes of radionuclides requires the use of simple and rapid methods of internal monitoring of the exposed individuals. The use of gamma cameras to estimate intakes and committed doses was investigated by the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions (CDC) of the USA in 2010.The present study aims to develop a calibration protocol for gamma cameras to be applied on internal monitoring based on urine samples to evaluate the incorporation of high-energy photon emitting radionuclides in emergency situations. A gamma camera available in a public hospital located in the city of Rio de Janeiro was calibrated using a standard liquid source of 152Eu supplied by the LNMRI of the IRD. “Efficiency vs Energy” curves at 2 and 10 cm were obtained. Calibration factors, Minimum Detectable Activities and Minimum Detectable Effective Doses of the gamma camera were calculated for 131I and 137Cs. The gamma camera evaluated in this work presents enough sensitivity to detect activities of such radionuclides at dose levels suitable to assess suspected accidental intakes.

Hospital preparedness analysis using the hospital emergency analysis tool (the HEAT)

Communication with mass media during and after a nuclear emergency presents both a challenge and an opportunity for emergency management. The challenge lies with the different motivations and types of process applied by mass media and emergency management; the opportunity arises from the power of mass media to reach out to an audience with information important for compliance with protective actions. This article summarises recommendations for improved media communication by nuclear emergency management professionals. Recommendations address both the traditional and new media, and are the result of empirical and qualitative research conducted in the context of the FP7 PREPARE project, including: (i) a media content analysis of newspapers articles reporting about Fukushima ( N = 1340); (ii) a content analysis of tweets about Fukushima ( N = 914); and (iii) a qualitative approach – round table discussions with stakeholders ( N > 100) involved in communication about nuclear emergencies. Results show that although challenging, nuclear emergency communication can be improved by using mass media and developing skills, training and resources during the preparedness phase of a nuclear emergency cycle. Some general recommendations and practical advice for communication with media is given.

Emergency radiology as a sub-speciality has come of age