Effective Dose Equivalent for Point Gamma Sources Located 10 Cm Near the Body

Abstract

The key component in the so-called EPRI effective dose equivalent (EDE) methodology is an algorithm that utilizes two dosimeters (instead of multiple dosimeters) to predict the EDE for external photon exposures. The exposure scenarios that were previously studied in deriving the algorithm include parallel photon beams and point sources 33 cm from the body surface. The motivation for this study was the need to investigate source locations within 33 cm from the body so the method is more widely applicable. The ORNL stylized mathematical human phantoms and the MCNP code were used to calculate organ doses in this study. This paper presents the EDE data for point gamma sources at 0.3, 1.0, and 1.5 MeV, respectively, which are located at 10 cm from the surface of the body. The results and analyses show that the locations ranging from the overhead to the foot have resulted in conservative ratios except for two general regions near the front upper thigh and directly overhead. If all locations considered in this study were averaged for each photon energy, the overall ratio is on the conservative side. These data suggest that the EPRI EDE methodology is still valid for sources located 10 cm from the body, although the chance for resulting in a non-conservative estimate of the EDE has increased in comparison with the sources located at 30 cm from the body. Finally, this paper provides recommendations on how to apply the EPRI EDE methodology.

Comparison of Dose From Radiological Examination for Scoliosis in Children Among Two Pediatric Hospitals by Monte Carlo Simulation

“…Simulation of x-ray interaction with matter and energy deposition in the patient was executed using the MCNP radiation transport code, which has been used extensively in medical physics and especially in radiation dosimetry (Kalender et al 1999;McCollough and Schueler 2000;DeMarco et al 2002;Session et al 2002;Bacher et al 2004;Lee et al 2005;Xu et al 2006;Gialousis et al 2006).…”

Training Software Using Virtual-Reality Technology and Pre-Calculated Effective Dose Data

“…We believe that, in order for the VR technology to be useful in ALARA related radiation protection planning, such simulation software should be based on realistic dose data such as the effective dose equivalent (EDE) required by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for radiation protection purposes (ICRP 1977;U.S. In particular, the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) has previously sponsored a number of projects that resulted in a large amount of EDE data and various personnel monitoring methodologies that have gained acceptance in the nuclear power plants (Reece et al 1994;Reece and Xu 1997;Xu et al 2006aXu et al , 2006b. In particular, the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) has previously sponsored a number of projects that resulted in a large amount of EDE data and various personnel monitoring methodologies that have gained acceptance in the nuclear power plants (Reece et al 1994;Reece and Xu 1997;Xu et al 2006aXu et al , 2006b.…”