Units and Quantities in Radiation Protection

Learning Objectives:
describe the different units & quantities used in radiation protection determine when to use the different units & convert one unit from the other solve related problems in radiation protection

Activity
Indicates the number of radionuclides disintegrating per second (dps or s-1) The SI unit is the becquerel (Bq) 1 Bq = 1 disintegration per second

Activity
Symbol is A Unit is becquerel (Bq)

transformation (decay) of one atom per second Curie (Ci)- old unit of activity
1 Ci = 3.7 x 1010 Bq = 0.037 terabecquerel (TBq)
tera (T) = 1012

Multiples & Prefixes of Bq

Multiple 1 1,000,000 1,000,000,000 1,000,000,000,000 1 x 1015 Prefix ------Mega (M) Giga (G) Tera (T) Peta (P) Abbreviation Bq MBq GBq TBq PBq

Relationship of Units of Activity

Becquerel (Bq) = 1 dps Curie (Ci) = 3.7 x 1010 dps

1 Ci = 3.7 x 1010 Bq 1 mCi = 3.7 x 10 7 Bq 1 Ci = 3.7 x 10 4 Bq

Useful Conversions for Units of Activity

Curies to Becquerels
1 Ci = 37 kBq 1 mCi = 37 MBq 1 Ci = 37 GBq 10 2 = 37 TBq

Becquerels to Curies
1 Bq = 2.7 x 10 -11 Ci 1 kBq = 2.7 x 10 -3 Ci 1 MBq = 2.7 x 10 -5 Ci = 27 Ci 1 GBq = 2.7 x 10 -2 Ci = 27mCi 1 TBq = 2.7 x 10 Ci = 27 Ci

Radiation Quantities

Energy of ionizing radiation (E) Joule (J) SI unit

1 eV = 1.6 x 10 -19 J

Radiation Quantities (2)

Fluence () no. of particles passing thru a

unit area - measured in particles per m 2

Fluence rate ()

no. of particles passing

thru a unit area per unit time (m -2 s -1)

Radiation Quantities (3)

Exposure (X) the amount of ionization
produced in air by photon i.e. gamma and x-rays Unit: Roentgen ( R) SI unit Coulomb per kg of air 1 R = 2.58 x 10 -4 C/kg of air

Radiation Quantities (4)

Kerma (k)
-

kinetic energy released per unit mass of absorber kinetic energy of charged particles produced in an absorbing medium by uncharged radiation

Unit: Joule/kg = Gray

Dosimetric Quantities
Absorbed Dose (D)

a measure of radiation energy absorbed per unit mass of matter

SI Unit: Gray (Gy) = J/kg Old Unit: Rad = radiation absorbed dose 1 Gy = 100 rad

Absorbed Dose (D)

Symbol is D Unit = gray (Gy) ; (1 joule per kilogram) Some countries still use the rad (= 0.01 Gy)

Examples

Convert the ff absorbed dose & dose rate:

0.4 mrad to Gy
7.5 Gyh -1 to radh-1

Dosimetric Quantities (2)

Equivalent Dose (H)

A measure of the biological effects of a particular type of radiation on organs or tissues

H = D x W R , W R = radiation weighting factor

Unit: Sievert (Sv) 1 Sv = 100 rem

Equivalent Dose (H)

Takes into account different radiation types Symbol is H Unit = Sievert (Sv) Some countries still use the rem (= 0.01 Sv) H = WR D

Radiation weighting factor, W R

- a dimensionless variable to be applied to the absorbed dose to provide an estimate of relative human hazard of low level exposure encountered in radiation protection practice from diff. types & energies of radiation

Radiation Weighting Factors

Type & Energy Range particles, all energies particles, all energies & x-rays, all energies Neutrons: < 10 keV
10 keV 100 keV > 100 keV 2 MeV > 2 MeV 20 MeV > 20 MeV

Radiation Weighting Factor (WR) 20 1 1

5 10 20 10 5

Example 1

Convert the ff equivalent dose & dose rate between old & new units:

0.25 mrem to Sv 0.3 mSvh-1 to remh-1

Example 2
Convert the ff. absorbed doses in a particular organ or tissue to equivalent doses:

2 mGy from particle 2 mGy from particle 2 mGy from rays Which of these would be the most damaging to organs or tissues?

Dosimetric Quantities (3)

Effective Dose (E)
- a measure of the effect of a particular type of radiation on organs or tissues

E T = H T x W T, W T = tissue weighting factor

Effective Dose (E)

Takes into account the radiosensitivities of different tissues or organs Symbol is E Unit = Sievert (Sv)

E
E = WTH

Tissue weighting factor, W T

- multipliers used for radiation protection purposes to account for the different sensitivities of different organs & tissues to the induction of stochastic effects of radiation

Tissue Weighting Factors (W T), ICRP 1990

Tissue
gonads bone marrow colon lung stomach
WT

0.20 0.12 0.12 0.12 0.12

bladder
breast liver esophagus

0.05
0.05 0.05 0.05

thyroid
skin bone surface Remainder

0.05
0.01 0.01 0.05

ICRP-International Commission for Radiological Protection

Recommended tissue weighting factors, ICRP 2007

Tissue
Bone-marrow (red), Colon, Lung, Stomach, Breast, Remainder tissues*

WT
0.12

Summation w T
0.72

Gonads
Bladder, Oesophagus, Liver, Thyroid Bone surface, Brain, Salivary glands, Skin Total

0.08
0.04 0.01

0.08
0.16 0.04 1.00

* Remainder tissues: Adrenals, Extrathoracic (ET) region, Gall bladder, Heart, Kidneys, Lymphatic nodes, Muscle, Oral mucosa, Pancreas, Prostate (M), Small intestine, Spleen, Thymus, Uterus/cervix (F).

Example

Calculate the effective dose resulting from 5 mSv equivalent dose to the ff organs/ tissues:

to the skin to the thyroid to the lung to the gonads

Dosimetric Quantities (3)

Committed Dose

dose accumulated by the body over 50 y following intake of radionuclides (except in the case of intakes by children where it is defined as the dose accumulated until the age of 70)

Summary of Radiation Quantities

Quantity Energy Symbol SI Unit E SI unit Conversion Name 1 eV = 1.6 x 10 19 J Joule (J) eV
Particles/ sq. m.

Fluence

Exposure X kerma K

Coul/kg Joule/kg Gray

(Gy)

1R= 2.58 x 10-4C/kg

1 Gy = 1 J/kg

Submultiples
1 Gy = 1 000 mGy = 1 000 000 Gy 1 Sv = 1 000 mSv = 1000 000 Sv In terms of old units: 1 Gy = 100 rad 1 mGy = 100 mrad 1 Gy = 0.1 mrad 1 Sv = 100 rem 1 mSv = 100 mrem 1 Sv = 0.1 mrem

Summary of Dosimetric Quantities

Quantity
Absorbed Dose Equivalent Dose Effective Dose

Symbol SI Unit D H E J/kg J/kg J/kg

SI Unit Name Gray (Gy) Sievert (Sv) Sievert (Sv)

Conversion
1 Gy = 100 rad

1 Sv = 100 rem

1 Sv = 100 rem

Radiation Quantities & Units (Summary)

Fluence (particles per unit area)

Source (Activity: Bq)

Equivalent dose (Sv) to a particular organ

Effective dose (Sv) to the whole body

Absorbed dose (Gy) to any medium

Tips to remember:
Roentgen: a measure of how much you are exposed

gray (or rad): how much you absorb sievert (or rem): how much biological damage it does

Measurement of Radiation
Radiation monitoring instruments Dose rate meter or survey meter calibrated to read in microsieverts per hour or millirem per hour Dosimeter Measures the total dose accumulated by the instrument over a period of time pocket or pen dosimeters-give direct or immediate reading of the dose Film badge and thermoluminescent dosimeters-provide a reading after processed by a laboratory Surface contamination meter Needed by users of unsealed sources More sensitive detector to monitor spills and normally provides reading in counts per second (cps) or counts per minute (cpm)

References

IAEA/ANSTO Module in Radiation Protection Distance Learning Project IAEA Post- Graduate Course in Radiation Protection & Safe Use of Radiation Sources (Lecture Materials)