Radiation Awareness

Training

Elayna Mellas
Radiation Safety Officer
Environmental Health & Safety Manager
Clarkson University
Downtown Snell 155
Tel: 315-268-6640
emellas@clarkson.edu
This training course has been partially adapted
from slides provided by Steve Backurz, Radiation
Safety Officer of The University of New Hampshire
 Overview
 What is radiation / radioactivity?
 What makes radiation harmful?
 Radiation dose - how much is too much?
 Background radiation – your exposure can
never be zero
 How are you protected at Clarkson?
 Emergencies
 Ordering and receiving radioactive material
at Clarkson
 Questions?
 Where Does
Radioactivity Come From?
 Allmatter is made up of atoms
 Atoms are the smallest component of

an element, comprised of three

particles
 Protons
 Neutrons
 Electrons
 Protons and neutrons

are in the central nucleus

 Electrons orbit the nucleus
 What is Radioactivity?
 Definition:
a collection of unstable atoms that
undergo spontaneous transformation that result in
new elements.
 An atom with an unstable nucleus will “decay” until
it becomes a stable atom, emitting radiation as it
decays
 The“amount” of radioactivity (called activity) is
given by the number of nuclear decays that occur
per unit time (decays per minute).
 The Curie
 A unit of activity defined by the number of
radioactive decays from a gram of radium
 1 Curie (Ci) = 2.22 E12 disintegrations/min (dpm)
 Sub-multiples of the Curie: millicurie 1 mCi = 2.22
E9 dpm
 microcurie 1 uCi = 2.22 E6 dpm

 International units: 1 bequerel = 1 disintegration /

sec
 Typical activities used at Clarkson University
are in the Ci to mCi range
 Radiation
 Definition: energy in the form of particles or
waves
 Types of radiation
 Ionizing: removes electrons from atoms
 Particulate (alphas and betas)
 Waves (gamma and X-rays)
 Non-ionizing (electromagnetic): can't remove

electrons from atoms

 infrared, visible, microwaves, radar, radio

waves, lasers
 Electromagnetic Spectrum
Radiation wavelength in angstrom units
8 6 4 2 -2 -4 -6
10 10 10 10 1 10 10 10

Radio Infrared V Ultra-Violet X-Rays Cosmic Rays

i Light
s
i
b
l
e Gamma Rays

-10 -8 -6 -4 -2 2 4
10 10 10 10 10 1 10 10

Photon energy in million electron volts (MeV)

 Ionization
Formation of a charged and reactive atom
- Ejected electron

Beta particle
- - -

Colliding
coulombic fields

The neutral absorber atom

acquires a positive charge -
 Why is Radiation Harmful?
Radiation deposits small amounts of energy,
or "heat" in matter
 Altersatoms
 Damage to cells & DNA causes mutations

and cancer
 Similar effects may occur from chemicals
 Much of the resulting damage is from the

production of ions
 Radiation Dose
 Human dose is measured in rem or millirem
 1000 mrem = 1 rem
 1 rem poses the same risk for any type of

ionizing radiation
 internal or external
 alpha, beta, gamma, x-ray, or neutron
 External radiation exposure measured by

dosimetry
 Internal radiation exposure measured using

bioassay sample analysis

 Acute Exposure
Large doses received in a short time period
 accidents
 nuclear war
 cancer therapy
Short term effects (acute radiation syndrome

150 to 350 rad whole body)

Anorexia Nausea
Fatigue Vomiting
Epilation Diarrhea
Hemorrhage Mortality
Acute Effects of Whole Body
Exposure on Man
Absorbed
dose (Rads) Effect
10,000 Death in a few hours
1,200 Death within days
600 Death within weeks
450 LD 50/30
100 Probable recovery
50 No observable effect
25 Blood changes definite
5 1st blood change obs
 Chronic Exposure
 Doses received over long periods
 Background radiation exposure
 Occupational radiation exposure
 50 rem acute vs 50 rem chronic
 acute: no time for cell repair
 chronic: time for cell repair
 Average US will receive 20 - 30 rems lifetime
 Long term effects
 Increased risk of cancer, genetic defects
 0.07% per rem lifetime exposure
 Normal risk: 25% (cancer incidence)
 Background Radiation
 Your exposure to radiation can never be zero because
background radiation is always present
 Natural sources – radon gas
 Cosmic rays
 Terrestrial (uranium-235)
 Healing arts: diagnostic X-rays, radiopharmaceuticals
 Nuclear weapons tests fallout
 Research with radioisotopes
 Consumer products
 Miscellaneous: air travel, transportation of radioactive

material
 Annual Dose from
Background Radiation
Total exposure Man-made sources
Medical X-Rays

Radon 55.0% 11

Other 1%

Internal 11%
Man-Made 18% Consumer
Nuclear Products 3%
Cosmic 8% Terrestrial 6% Medicine 4%

Total US average dose equivalent = 360 mrem/year

 Consumer Products
 Tobacco (Po-210)
 Smoke detectors (Am-241)
 Welding rods (Th-222)
 Television (low levels of X-rays)
 watches & other luminescent products

(tritium or radium)
 Gas lantern mantles
 Fiesta ware (Ur-235)
 Jewelry
 Smoke Detectors

Alpha particles from americium-241 (red lines) ionize the air

molecules (pink and blue spheres). The ions carry a small
current between two electrodes. Smoke particles (brown
spheres) attach to ions reducing current and initiate alarm.
 Fiesta Ware

Glazed with dye containing uranium

 Luminous Watches

Hands and dials contain H-3 or radium that glows in the dark
 Nuclear Medicine

X-rays and fluoroscopes are

used to look inside the body
Radioactive Material at Clarkson
 Activities are licensed by the State of New York
 Radiation Safety Committee has responsibility to

review, approve, and oversee activities

 Radiation Safety Officer (RSO) runs program
 Clarkson is required to:
 Train individuals that use sources of radiation
 Train non-radiation workers that work in the

vicinity of radiation sources

 Monitor and control radiation exposures
 Maintain signs, labels, postings
 Manage and properly dispose of radioactive

waste
 Research at Clarkson
Using Radiation Sources
 Radioactive materials (both open and
sealed sources such as S-35, P-32, C-14, H-
3, Ra-226, Am-241)
 Gas chromatographs (sealed sources)
 Liquid scintillation counters (sealed

sources for internal standards)

 X-ray diffraction equipment
 Electron microscopes
 Standards for Protection
Against Radiation
 Occupational limits
 5,000 mrem / year TEDE
 50,000 mrem / year CDE (any single organ)
 15,000 mrem / year lens of the eye
 Members of public
 100 mrem / year
 No more than 2 mrem in any one hour in
unrestricted areas from external sources
 Declared pregnant females (occupational)
 500 mrem / term (evenly distributed)
 Anticipated Exposures
 Nonradioactive workers must receive less than
100 mrems / year
 Average annual background exposure for U.S.
population = 360 mrem / year
 State
and federal exposure limits for radiation
workers = 5000 mrem / year
 Anticipatedexposures: Less than the minimum
detectable dose for film badges (likely less than
10 mrem / month) - essentially zero
 Access Restriction
Required by license and NY regulations
Security and control of radioactive material

Unrestricted area

Controlled area

Unrestricted area Restricted Unrestricted area

area
 Posting of Radiation Areas
All radiation areas are posted
with warning signs
Use caution when entering and
working in a radiation area
If any container is labeled
“radioactive” do not disturb
If you have questions or concerns call:
Craig Woodworth, radiation safety officer, 268-
2391, Room 147 Science Center
 Emergency Response
 Fire
in radioactive areas:
Notify Fire Department and RSO, clear the

area of people. Remove any seriously

wounded persons. Keep your distance
 NotifyRSO if you suspect:
Inhalation, ingestion or other intake of

radioactive material
Accidental release of radioactive material

into the environment

 Radiation Protection Basics
 Time:minimize the time that you are in contact
with radioactive material to reduce exposure
 Distance:keep your distance. If you double the
distance the exposure rate drops by factor of 4
 Shielding:
 Lead, water, or concrete for gamma & X-ray
 Thick plastic (lucite) for betas

 Protectiveclothing: protects against

contamination only - keeps radioactive material
off skin and clothes
 Radiation Exposure Will Not
Make You Radioactive
 Radiation: energy in the form of particles and
waves
 Radioactive material: material that is unstable

and emits radiation

 Contamination: radioactive material where it is

not wanted
 Campfire example: burning logs (radioactive

material), heat (radiation), burning embers that

escape the controlled area (contamination)
 Shipping Radioactive Materials
Since the atomic energy industry began over 50
years ago, there has been an excellent record of
safety in transportation of nuclear material
Over 4 million packages containing radioactive
material are transported annually within the US
To date, there have been no deaths or serious
injuries
 Ordering & Receipt
of Radioactive Materials
 Only the RSO is authorized to order radioactive
material at Clarkson
 When packages are received, call the RSO. He
will check for contamination, and deliver to the
package to the lab on the same day as receipt
 All packages containing radioactive materials
must be secured to prevent theft or loss
 If any package is damaged, do not handle. Call
the RSO immediately and ask the carrier to stay
to be checked for contamination
 Labels on Packages
of Radioactive Material

Radioactive white I; almost no

radiation (0.5 mR/hr or 0.005
mSv/hr) maximum on the surface

Radioactive yellow II; low

radiation levels (50 mR/hr or 0.05
mSv/hr) maximum at 1 meter
 Labels on Packages
of Radioactive Material
Radioactive yellow III; higher
radiation levels (200 mR/hr or 2
mSv/hr) maximum on surface. 10
mR/hr or .1 mSv/hr maximum at 1
meter.

The transport index is the

maximum radiation level (mR/hr) at
1 meter from the surface of an
undamaged package.
 Your Role
in Radiation Protection
 Don’t touch or move anything with radioactive
material labels.
 Report anything that looks out of the ordinary
 If you are uncertain about what to do, where to

go, requirements, or exposures:

 Call the people on the emergency number list
 Call the Radiation Safety Officer (RSO)

Elayna Mellas
268-6640
 Call 911
 Acknowledgements
This training course has been partially adapted
from slides provided by Steve Backurz,
Radiation Safety Officer of The University of New
Hampshire.