A Comparison of Transient Dose Model Predictions and Experimental Measurements

Steinman, R.L.; Weiner, Ruth F.; Kearfott, Kimberlee J.

doi:10.1097/00004032-200210000-00008

Cited by 7 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…The majority of data provided to the public on transportation exposure risk is based on calculated exposures from well known mathematical models (Steinman et al 2002). Previous studies for the NTS §, ** were based on a small number of trucks and used a constant background gamma radiation representative of the NTS waste management facilities, but not of conditions offsite of the facility where members of the public would be more likely to be near a LLW truck.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For comparison, the cumulative exposure for Ely and Tonopah, Nevada, (0.835 mR; see Table 4) from Miller et al (2005) was compared to an analytical solution from a transient dose model, RISKIND (Steinman et al 2002;Yuan et al 1996), in which the truck is moving. The truck was assumed to be traveling at 42 km h Ϫ1 for a 15-s exposure period.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The majority of information provided to the public on exposure risks from the transportation of LLW is based on calculated exposures. Steinman et al (2002) used RISKIND and RADTRAN, both mathematical models for estimating dose and risk from the transportation of radioactive waste, to compare against a small experimental dataset of small-sized waste containers to attempt to validate the mathematical models. The study presented here measured external gamma radiation readings from trucks transporting LLW to the NTS.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Characterizing Potential Exposure to the Public From Low-Level Radioactive Waste Transportation by Truck

Miller

Shafer²,

Gray³

et al. 2007

Health Physics

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To address public concern about potential exposure to gamma radiation from legal-weight low-level radioactive waste truck shipments to the Nevada Test Site, a stationary, automated array of four pressurized ion chambers was established for trucks to pass through. Data were collected from 1,012 of the 2,260 trucks that transported low-level radioactive waste to the Nevada Test Site from February through December 2003. To avoid perception of biasing a potential exposure low, the maximum reading (muR per hour; muR h(-1)) from the array was assigned as the gross measurement value for each truck. [In this article, exposure measurements are reported as Roentgen (R), as this unit is consistent with the data readings of the measurement instruments and has been historically presented to public stakeholders. Subsequently, dose measurements are reported as Roentgen Equivalent Man (rem).] To calculate the "net exposure" for each truck, the average and standard deviation of the maximum background values during the corresponding 12-h period when the truck arrived were subtracted from the gross value. For 483 trucks (47.7%), calculated net exposure values were equal to or less than zero, indicating that the exposure from the truck was indistinguishable from background. An additional 206 trucks (20.4%) had calculated net exposure values ranging between 0.0 and 1.0 muR h(-1). Cumulative exposure scenarios appropriate for rural transportation routes to the Nevada Test Site were developed; however, these scenarios assumed the unlikely case that the same individual was exposed to all of the trucks on that route. Cumulative exposure values were dominated by a small percentage of the trucks with comparatively high values. In communities along transportation routes, the probability of an individual receiving a potential exposure from a single truck may be a more meaningful perspective.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Characterizing Potential Exposure to the Public From Low-Level Radioactive Waste Transportation by Truck

Miller

Shafer²,

Gray³

et al. 2007

Health Physics

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“…For such a source, dose rate is inversely proportional to the square of the radial distance from the source at distances large compared to the package dimensions. A point-source model yields values of dose rates that are slightly larger than actual dose rates measured at source-to-receptor distances greater than twice the characteristic package dimension (usually equivalent to twice the largest package dimension) (Steinman, et al, 2002). Collective doses to a population, like the resident population along a route, are calculated by integrating over the area occupied by the population, so that the dose rate -the integrand -is slightly more complex than a simple inverse square dependence.…”

Section: Point-and Line-source Models and Related Parametersmentioning

confidence: 97%

RADTRAN 6 technical manual.

Neuhauser¹,

Kanipe²,

Weiner³

2014

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This Technical Manual contains descriptions of the calculation models and mathematical and numerical methods used in the RADTRAN 6 computer code for transportation risk and consequence assessment. The RADTRAN 6 code combines user-supplied input data with values from an internal library of physical and radiological data to calculate the expected radiological consequences and risks associated with the transportation of radioactive material. Radiological consequences and risks are estimated with numerical models of exposure pathways, receptor populations, package behavior in accidents, and accident severity and probability.

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“…The RADTRAN spherical model overestimates the measured dose by a few per cent. 4 The dose to workers and the public from a cask during routine transportation depends on the amount of time workers or the public are exposed to the cask, the distance from the cask, the external radiation from the cask, and intervening shielding. When the vehicle carrying the cask is travelling along the route, the dose delivered by the vehicle also depends on the vehicle speed.…”

Section: Radtran Model Of Routine Incident-free Transportationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spent fuel transportation risk assessment: routine transportation

Weiner

2013

Packaging, Transport, Storage & Security of Radioactive Mat

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The RADTRAN model for calculating radiation doses is based on the well understood behaviour of ionising radiation. Absorption of ionising radiation depends on the energy and type of radiation and on the absorbing material. The casks that are used to transport spent nuclear fuel have walls that absorb most of the emitted ionising radiation and thereby shield the public and the workers. For routine transportation, RADTRAN models the cask as a sphere and assumes that the longest dimension of the trailer or railcar carrying the cask is the same as that of the cask. The dose rate in Sv/h at one metre from the cask is modelled as a virtual source at the centre of a sphere whose diameter is the longest dimension of the actual spent fuel cask. People who live along the cask's route and the people in vehicles that share the route are exposed to external radiation from the cask. The dose to workers and the public from a cask during routine transportation depends on the time that the workers or public are exposed to the cask, the distance from the cask, and the cask's external radiation. When the vehicle carrying the cask is travelling along the route, the faster the vehicle goes, the less exposure to anyone along the vehicle's route. Therefore, an individual member of the public receives the largest dose from a moving vehicle when he or she is as close as possible to the vehicle, and the vehicle is travelling as slowly as possible. In the present analysis, these doses are in the range of four to seven nanosieverts. Collective doses along the route depend on the size of the exposed population. In this study, such doses were of the order of 0?1 person-millisieverts. The appropriate comparison between the collective dose from a shipment of spent fuel is not a comparison between the radiation dose from the shipment and zero dose, but between the background radiation dose in the presence and absence of a shipment, e.g. 8?810096 person-Sv if there is a shipment and 8?81000 person-Sv if there is no shipment.

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A Comparison of Transient Dose Model Predictions and Experimental Measurements

Cited by 7 publications

References 6 publications

Characterizing Potential Exposure to the Public From Low-Level Radioactive Waste Transportation by Truck

Characterizing Potential Exposure to the Public From Low-Level Radioactive Waste Transportation by Truck

RADTRAN 6 technical manual.

Spent fuel transportation risk assessment: routine transportation

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