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NCRP Report No. 59
bcmk NCRP Report No. 59 Operational Radiation Safety Program of the National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements, Washington, 1978
This report is a succinct and well written outline of the elements of operational programmes for radiological protection. Although principally of use to those with management responsibilities for processes involving the use of radiation or radioactive materials, it will also provide a check list for those with direct professional responsibility for operational radiological protection. In fifty pagrs and nine chapters the reader is quickly led from the administrative organisation of Radiation Safety Officers and Committees through facility design, area monitoring, personnel monitoring, personal equipment, training, emergency planning and occupational medicine as it affects radiation workers. Each chapter concludes with a bibliography for further and deeper reading. As might be expected, emphasis is given to North American sources although not exclusively and the relevant IAEA and ICRP recommendations are cited. The final chapter outlines the position as regards the responsibilities of the various government departments of the United States. It would be advisable for the British reader to consult in addition the Ionising Radiations Regulations, the Radioactive Substances Act and Regulations, and the various codes of practice where applicable, although the impact of the impending Euratom Directive on Basic Standards in Radiological Protection can be expected to result in changes to the British regulations in the next year or so. The preface to the report indicates that the NCRP will continue to use the curie, rad and rem units for some time inspire of the ICRP and European moves to adopt the bequerel, gray and sievert in the near future. However, radiation quantities and units are hardly mentioned in the main text of the report other than in the fifth chapter on 'Monitoring and Control Programs (sic)'. This chapter opens with a passing reference to cost-benefit analysis giving the estimated cost of the 'person-rem' as between $25 and $1000. However, the text then points out that any estimate is difficult to defend leaving management and their Radiation Safety Officer to make their own practical judgement of what may reasonably be spent to reduce radiation exposure. One might venture to predict that trade unions will be taking a greater interest in this topic in the future. The report presents a very balanced view of radiation hazards. For example, in discussing the use of respirators
300
it points out that because of the restricted vision and distraction the use of this equipment may expose the worker to a risk of injury which may outweigh, by implication, the risk arising from inhaling radioactive material. The report concludes with a description of the objectives and composition of NCRP and a list of other reports in the series. In summary, the report should be read by anyone with managerial or professional responsibilites for organising an operational programme of radiological protection, however, they will also need to be aware of the particular regularity framework applicable to their own situation. J.A. Dennis
Acoustic Emission A Bibliography with abstracts by F. Drouillard Reviewing a bibliography may not seem the most entertaining of pursuits, but the author smooths the way with a nine page introduction on the history of acoustic emission. This starts with surmise about cracking noises from posts cooling too fast iri kilns as far back as 6500 BC, through the inevitable 'tin cry' until serious scientific experiments began in the early part of this century. In some of the earliest work by Anderson in 1926 during tensile testing of duralumin he states that thin sheets give sounds high in pitch whereas for thick sheets the sounds are low pitched, perhaps a foretaste of the considerable problems of colouration of acoustic emission signals by specimen geometry. Subsequent work is fully covered within the space limitations and illustrates the considerable effort that has been and still is being directed towards the development of acoustic emission as a practical ndt tool. From the introduction and careful perusal of the bibliography, it is clear that this aim has been achieved in only very limited cases. As a tool for examining cracking and various processes in materials research it kas,achieved useful results and the celebrated case of detection of acoustic emission just before failure of a 260 in diameter rocket motor case is described. However, this was detected by examination of results subsequent to failure and there are few examples of tests being terminated prior to failure.
NDT INTERNATIONAL . DECEMBER 1979
This report is a succinct and well written outline of the elements of operational programmes for radiological protection. Although principally of use to those with management responsibilities for processes involving the use of radiation or radioactive materials, it will also provide a check list for those with direct professional responsibility for operational radiological protection. In fifty pagrs and nine chapters the reader is quickly led from the administrative organisation of Radiation Safety Officers and Committees through facility design, area monitoring, personnel monitoring, personal equipment, training, emergency planning and occupational medicine as it affects radiation workers. Each chapter concludes with a bibliography for further and deeper reading. As might be expected, emphasis is given to North American sources although not exclusively and the relevant IAEA and ICRP recommendations are cited. The final chapter outlines the position as regards the responsibilities of the various government departments of the United States. It would be advisable for the British reader to consult in addition the Ionising Radiations Regulations, the Radioactive Substances Act and Regulations, and the various codes of practice where applicable, although the impact of the impending Euratom Directive on Basic Standards in Radiological Protection can be expected to result in changes to the British regulations in the next year or so. The preface to the report indicates that the NCRP will continue to use the curie, rad and rem units for some time inspire of the ICRP and European moves to adopt the bequerel, gray and sievert in the near future. However, radiation quantities and units are hardly mentioned in the main text of the report other than in the fifth chapter on 'Monitoring and Control Programs (sic)'. This chapter opens with a passing reference to cost-benefit analysis giving the estimated cost of the 'person-rem' as between $25 and $1000. However, the text then points out that any estimate is difficult to defend leaving management and their Radiation Safety Officer to make their own practical judgement of what may reasonably be spent to reduce radiation exposure. One might venture to predict that trade unions will be taking a greater interest in this topic in the future. The report presents a very balanced view of radiation hazards. For example, in discussing the use of respirators
300
it points out that because of the restricted vision and distraction the use of this equipment may expose the worker to a risk of injury which may outweigh, by implication, the risk arising from inhaling radioactive material. The report concludes with a description of the objectives and composition of NCRP and a list of other reports in the series. In summary, the report should be read by anyone with managerial or professional responsibilites for organising an operational programme of radiological protection, however, they will also need to be aware of the particular regularity framework applicable to their own situation. J.A. Dennis
Acoustic Emission A Bibliography with abstracts by F. Drouillard Reviewing a bibliography may not seem the most entertaining of pursuits, but the author smooths the way with a nine page introduction on the history of acoustic emission. This starts with surmise about cracking noises from posts cooling too fast iri kilns as far back as 6500 BC, through the inevitable 'tin cry' until serious scientific experiments began in the early part of this century. In some of the earliest work by Anderson in 1926 during tensile testing of duralumin he states that thin sheets give sounds high in pitch whereas for thick sheets the sounds are low pitched, perhaps a foretaste of the considerable problems of colouration of acoustic emission signals by specimen geometry. Subsequent work is fully covered within the space limitations and illustrates the considerable effort that has been and still is being directed towards the development of acoustic emission as a practical ndt tool. From the introduction and careful perusal of the bibliography, it is clear that this aim has been achieved in only very limited cases. As a tool for examining cracking and various processes in materials research it kas,achieved useful results and the celebrated case of detection of acoustic emission just before failure of a 260 in diameter rocket motor case is described. However, this was detected by examination of results subsequent to failure and there are few examples of tests being terminated prior to failure.
NDT INTERNATIONAL . DECEMBER 1979