Route measurements of natural surface radiation background in the Almaty region

Measurements of the spatial distribution of radon isotopes were carried out from April 2021 to August 2021 in the foothills of the Trans-Ili Alatau of the Tien Shan in the Almaty region at various heights above sea level: from 500 to 2500 meters. They were carried out using electronic radiometric equipment: beta-dosimeter “RKS-01B-SOLO”; gamma dosimeter “RKS-01G-SOLO”; radiometer of radon and its daughter decay products “RAMON- 02” in the field. As a result, preliminary assessment schemes were built for route measurements of the 222Rn radon isotope, beta and gamma radiation fields from natural daughter products of decay of radon isotopes and radionuclides located in the surface atmospheric layer.

Consideration of the contribution of the natural background component during individual control of radiation doses to personnel

When ensuring radiation safety in the Russian Federation, there is a principle of separate independent assessment of doses from natural, medical, emergency and technogenic exposure. In practice, it is not always possible to comply with this principled approach. The established dose limits are related only to man-made radiation during normal operation of sources of ionizing radiation. However, during the formation of regional and federal databases on individual doses of personnel exposure, information is entered not on technogenic exposure, but on industrial exposure, that is, without subtracting the natural radiation background. The natural component of the individual dose at low radiation doses is quite significant. Failure to its subtraction leads to an overestimation of the individual dose of external exposure of personnel. Difficulties arise in the implementation of the subtraction of the natural radiation background: 1) in what cases it is necessary to subtract the background, 2) what value to choose for the subtracted background, 3) what method to measure the background, 4) at what stage of processing the measurement information to subtract the background. This article proposes a method for solving the problem of subtracting the natural background radiation from the values of individual doses of external exposure to personnel based on results of individual dosimetric control. Using the example of the city of St. Petersburg, the natural background radiation was measured by the thermoluminescent method of individual dosimetry at 50 control points for three consecutive years (2018-2020). To measure the natural background, we used individual thermoluminescent dosimeters of the same type as those used to measure individual equivalents of external radiation doses to personnel. The choice of using the thermoluminescent method as a predominant one for adjusting the average doses of external radiation from technogenic sources of ionizing radiation when subtracting the natural component of the dose has been substantiated. Comparison of official data on personnel exposure doses with the data obtained as a result of our own measurements is made. Recommendations are given on the use of the obtained values of the average natural radiation background in the formation of regional and federal databases on individual doses of personnel exposure.

The Radiological Background Inside and Outside the Libyan Iron and Steel Company in Misurata City, Northwest of Libya

Radioactive background is very important with regard to the exposure of the population to radiation, many countries of the world measure the rate of exposure caused by natural radiation for different purposes, where radioactive pollution represents an important problem as a result of the spread and the frequent use of radioactive materials in different applications, such as medicine, agriculture, industry, and others, and some industrial facilities in the city of Misurata like Libyan Iron Company use some techniques that depend on radioactive sources. In this study, over a whole year with its four seasons, the levels of radiation background were evaluated in the area surrounding the Libyan Iron and Steel Company in the Qasr Ahmed region in Misurata city and within the company’s. It is measured for primary and secondary directions for a distance of 8 km. The radiation levels outside and inside the company’s perimeter were within the natural limits of the radiation background in the area, radiation levels do not different between the monitoring points that were measured within the company’s borders from those that were measured in the area surrounding the company. The radiation levels are not affected by the measurement season, and therefore that the obsession of radioactive contamination that some people have is unfounded and that the situation from this aspect is reassuring.

Forecasting the radiation background in the territories of Kazakhstan located near the uranium mining industries

A significant part of the territory of Kazakhstan is characterized by a high natural background radiation of soils and rocks, the spread of natural ground and underground waters with high concentrations of radionuclides in the regions of uranium, thorium and rare metal ore provinces and regions. Therefore, conducting high-quality radio monitoring of the state of the environment using modern information systems will make it possible to predict the background radiation in a timely manner and outline measures to reduce environmental risks to the health of the nation as a whole. Key words: radioecology, monitoring, life safety, radionuclides, national health.

Studies of high-field QED with the LUXE experiment at the European XFEL

The LUXE experiment aims at studying high-field QED in electron-laser and photon-laser interactions, with the 16.5 GeV electron beam of the European XFEL and a laser beam with power of up to 350 TW. The experiment will measure the spectra of electrons and photons in non-linear Compton scattering where production rates in excess of 109 are expected per 1 Hz bunch crossing. At the same time positrons from pair creation in either the two-step trident process or the Breit-Wheeler process will be measured, where the expected rates range from 10−3 to 104 per bunch crossing, depending on the laser power and focus. These measurements have to be performed in the presence of low-energy high radiation-background. To meet these challenges, for high-rate electron and photon fluxes, the experiment will use Cherenkov radiation detectors, scintillator screens, sapphire sensors as well as lead-glass monitors for back-scattering off the beam-dump. A four-layer silicon-pixel tracker and a compact sampling electromagnetic calorimeter will be used to measure the positron spectra. The layout of the experiment and the expected performance under the harsh radiation conditions will be presented.

Morbidity of Children's Population of Lermontov City, Located in the Uranium Legacy Area

Purpose: To carry out assessment the health status of the child population of the Lermontov city. This child population living in the area, of uranium legacy, and they are critical group of the population in terms of sensitivity to adverse environmental factors. Materials and methods: The object of the study was the morbidity of children 0–14 years old (primary, chronic, oncological). The research material was the data of reporting forms of medical statistics, presented in the following forms: 7 – information on malignant neoplasms and 12 - information on the number of diseases in children. The development included data from Clinical hospital # 101 of the FMBA of Russia for 2014–2018. Statistical data processing was carried out using standard methods used for the analysis of biomedical data. Results: The morbidity of children 0–14 years old in Lermontov in 2014–2018 averaged 2310.9 ± 115.7 per 1000. In the structure of morbidity, the leading places were occupied by diseases of the respiratory system – 59.2 %, the digestive system – 8.8 %, skin and subcutaneous tissue 5.5 %, trauma and poisoning – 4, 8 % and infectious and parasitic diseases. The frequency of chronic morbidity does not exceed the population estimates – 73.0 ± 4.1 per 1000. The peculiarity of chronic morbidity is the relatively high incidence of skin diseases – 25.3 % and the musculoskeletal system – 20.4 %. The morbidity of children in the first year of life is 2348.0 ± 135.1 per 1000. A feature of the morbidity structure is the high incidence of respiratory diseases, which makes up 66.3 % of the total morbidity, with population estimates – 20–30 %. Conclusion: The increased radiation background can be considered as one of the possible negative environmental factors affecting the health of the population.

Results of the 20-year period of functioning of the Federal Databank on the natural radiation doses to the population of the Russian Federation

This study is focused on the analysis of the results of the functioning of the Federal Databank on the doses to the public of the Russian Federation from natural and man-made modified radiation background as a part of Joint governmental system of control and accounting of the doses from ionizing exposure in 2001-2020. The mean individual annual effective dose of the public of the Russian Federation from natural sources of ionizing exposure, calculated based on the data from all measurements in 2001-2020, is equal to 3,36 mSv/year. The study includes the analysis of the problems and perspectives of the improvement of the system of the data collection on the levels of exposure of the public of the Russian Federation from natural sources.

EXPERIENCE IN CREATING AN INTERDEPARTMENTAL INFORMATION SYSTEM ON OVERCOMING THE CONSEQUENCES OF RADIATION ACCIDENTS

Статья представляет сообщение об опыте информирования населения, в первую очередь, проживающего на радиоактивно загрязнённых территориях, о радиационной обстановке на основе межведомственного (МЧС России - Росгидромет - Роспотребнадзор) интернет-портала. Работа межведомственного интернет-портала включала в себя не только компонент информирования, но и формирование населением (студентами и школьниками при поддержке преподавательского состава) альтернативного контента о радиационном фоне в местах проживания. The article presents a report on the experience of informing the population, primarily those living in radioactively contaminated areas, about the radiation situation on the basis of an interdepartmental (EMERCOM of Russia - Roshydromet - Rospotrebnadzor) Internet portal. The work of the interdepartmental Internet portal included not only an information component, but also the formation by the population (students and schoolchildren with the support of the teaching staff) of alternative content about the radiation background in places of residence.