Harmonization of IEC type testing requirements and test methods for active area dosimeters in environmental monitoring

Abstract

Advancements in area monitoring caused by development of environmental monitoring networks which utilise active electronic dosimeters have led to widespread use of active area dosimeters. Currently, there are various sets of requirements for area dosimeters available in IEC standards. A clear distinction is not always made between requirements for area dosimeters used for workplace monitoring and that used for environmental monitoring. Performance testing methods related to the radiation characteristics were examined in a number of standards. Out of this, criteria in terms of relative response limits of variation have been derived for photon energy, angle of incidence and dose rate non-linearity for both dosimeter use cases. Testing of several active area dosimeters which are used for environmental monitoring has been performed in a wide range of photon energy, angle of incidence and dose rate. The collected requirements for environmental and workplace area dosimetry imply that some harmonization of IEC standards for area dosimeters is needed.