Overview
![](/assets/images/picto-drapeau-france-3a76576a5d60a512053b4612ab58dae5.png)
Read this article from a comprehensive knowledge base, updated and supplemented with articles reviewed by scientific committees.
Read the articleAUTHOR
-
Jean-Claude THÉVENIN: Secretary of Subcommittee 45B "Instrumentation for radiation protection" of the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) - Assistant to the Head of the Dosimetry Department, Institut de Radioprotection et de Sûreté Nucléaire (IRSN)
INTRODUCTION
In France, some 230,000 people may be exposed to ionizing radiation. Some of them work in nuclear power generation (fuel fabrication, nuclear power plants, reprocessing, research). Others, more scattered but more numerous, work in the medical field (radiotherapy, fluoroscopy, nuclear medicine), in industry (sterilization, polymerization, radiography of parts and welds, etc.), in the military (nuclear ships, weapons), in university research (research laboratories, gas pedals), and so on.
In accordance with European directives and French regulations, these workers must be monitored to ensure that they are not exposed to radiation doses in excess of certain values corresponding to a risk considered sufficiently low to be acceptable.
This control is carried out by means of individual dosimeters, which are the subject of this article. This dosimetry is compulsory for workers likely to be exposed to more than 30% of the regulatory limit (category A).
These dosimeters must be worn on the chest, where the value they measure is considered representative of the effective dose (average dose for the whole body). In special cases, where the extremities are particularly exposed, workers can wear dosimeter rings or wrist dosimeters.
Over the last ten years, optimization - i.e. the search for the lowest possible level of exposure, taking into account economic and social factors - has gradually become a major objective of radiation protection for workers.
While passive dosimeters only provide information on the dose received a posteriori, direct-reading electronic dosimeters are increasingly used, often connected to centralized daily recording systems, and enable effective action to be taken in the direction of optimization.
In the event of an accident, dosimeters can be used to determine the doses received by the worker and to help with medical diagnosis.
In all cases, the user should bear in mind that a dosimeter is generally not designed to respond perfectly to all types or energies of radiation. He should choose a dosimeter suited to the radiation fields to which the worker is (mostly) exposed.
Exclusive to subscribers. 97% yet to be discovered!
You do not have access to this resource.
Click here to request your free trial access!
Already subscribed? Log in!
![](/assets/images/logo-eti-286623ed91fa802ce039246e516e5852.png)
The Ultimate Scientific and Technical Reference
This article is included in
Nuclear engineering
This offer includes:
Knowledge Base
Updated and enriched with articles validated by our scientific committees
Services
A set of exclusive tools to complement the resources
Practical Path
Operational and didactic, to guarantee the acquisition of transversal skills
Doc & Quiz
Interactive articles with quizzes, for constructive reading
Instrumentation for individual worker dosimetry
Bibliography
References
- (1) - van DIJK (J.W.E.), BORDY (J.M.), VANHAVERE (F.), WERNLI (C.), ZAMANI-VALASIADOU (M.) - A review of the properties of the dosimetric systems and the quality assurance programmes of 48 dosimetric services in the European Union and Switzerland. - Radiation-Protection-Dosimetry, vol. 96, n° 1, p. 151-157 (2001)....
Standardization
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) website can be consulted:
Standards dealing with references or methods
- Reference X-rays and gamma rays for calibrating dosimeters and flowmeters, and for determining their response as a function of photon energy. – Part 1: Radiation characteristics...
Regulations
ICRU documents relating to the measurement of external radiation doses :
ICRU 39 (1985) Determination of Dose Equivalents Resulting from External Radiation Sources ;
ICRU 43 (1988) Determination of Dose Equivalents from External Radiation Sources – Part 2 ;
ICRU 47 (1992) Measurement of Dose Equivalents from...
Exclusive to subscribers. 97% yet to be discovered!
You do not have access to this resource.
Click here to request your free trial access!
Already subscribed? Log in!
![](/assets/images/logo-eti-286623ed91fa802ce039246e516e5852.png)
The Ultimate Scientific and Technical Reference