A new passive radon-thoron discriminative measurement system

Radiat Prot Dosimetry. 2010 Oct;141(4):462-7. doi: 10.1093/rpd/ncq241.

Abstract

A new passive radon-thoron discriminative measurement system has been developed for monitoring radon and thoron individually. It consists of a 'couple' of passive integrating devices with a CR39 nuclear track detector (NTD). The experimental prototype is based on the application of a new concept of NTD instrument developed at ENEA, named Alpha-PREM, acronym of piston radon exposure meter, which allows controlling the detector exposure with a patented sampling technique (Int. Eu. Pat. and US Pat.). The 'twin diffusion chambers system' was based on two A-PREM devices consisting of the standard device, named NTD-Rn, and a modified version, named NTD-Rn/Tn, which was set up to improve thoron sampling efficiency of the diffusion chamber, without changing the geometry and the start/stop function of the NTD-Rn device. Coupling devices fitted on each device allowed getting a system, which works as a double-chamber structure when deployed at the monitoring position. In this paper both technical and physical aspects are considered.

MeSH terms

  • Air Pollutants, Radioactive
  • Air Pollution, Indoor / analysis*
  • Environmental Exposure
  • Equipment Design
  • Gases
  • Housing
  • Humans
  • Radiation Monitoring / instrumentation*
  • Radiometry / instrumentation*
  • Radiometry / methods
  • Radon / analysis*
  • Radon Daughters / analysis*
  • Risk

Substances

  • Air Pollutants, Radioactive
  • Gases
  • Radon Daughters
  • Radon