Real time monitoring of Rn-222 in workplaces and estimation of working time correction factor

IF 1.6 3区物理与天体物理 Q2 NUCLEAR SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Radiation Measurements Pub Date : 2025-02-01 DOI:10.1016/j.radmeas.2024.107359

I. Dimitrova, V. Todorov, S. Georgiev, K. Mitev

{"title":"Real time monitoring of Rn-222 in workplaces and estimation of working time correction factor","authors":"I. Dimitrova, V. Todorov, S. Georgiev, K. Mitev","doi":"10.1016/j.radmeas.2024.107359","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The potential of electronic monitors for evaluating radon exposure is still not fully harnessed, and tests under real conditions are scarce. Ten workplaces were continuously monitored for a year with the radon measurement network of Sofia University, with calibrated and metrologically assured RadonEye +2 monitors. In 7 of the workplaces the average activity concentration of radon during the working time was significantly lower than the total time average. This difference is attributed to behavioral patterns. The ratio of the working time and the total time average (called working time correction factor <em>k</em><sub>WT</sub>) for the whole year ranged from 0.71 to 0.98. Its weekly values varied significantly with coefficients of variation between 9 and 28%. Therefore, using short term estimates of <em>k</em><sub>WT</sub> to correct the total time radon average determined by passive detectors could lead to bias.</div><div>The workplaces also exhibited different seasonal radon patterns, although most were offices with similar schedules. In most pairs of workplaces the monthly averages were correlated very weakly or even negatively. This indicates that seasonal radon variations could be specific to each workplace. The value of <em>k</em><sub>WT</sub> also varied with the season, suggesting that seasonal variations of radon during working hours might differ from those observed with passive integrating detectors.</div><div>Overall, long-term follow-up by metrologically assured electronic monitors could help to improve and personalize the estimate of radon exposure of workers. These monitors could potentially support smart anti-radon systems with optimal operation schedules, thereby contributing to the reduction of the energy impact of buildings.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":21055,"journal":{"name":"Radiation Measurements","volume":"181 ","pages":"Article 107359"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6000,"publicationDate":"2025-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Radiation Measurements","FirstCategoryId":"101","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S135044872400307X","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"NUCLEAR SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

Abstract

The potential of electronic monitors for evaluating radon exposure is still not fully harnessed, and tests under real conditions are scarce. Ten workplaces were continuously monitored for a year with the radon measurement network of Sofia University, with calibrated and metrologically assured RadonEye +2 monitors. In 7 of the workplaces the average activity concentration of radon during the working time was significantly lower than the total time average. This difference is attributed to behavioral patterns. The ratio of the working time and the total time average (called working time correction factor k_WT) for the whole year ranged from 0.71 to 0.98. Its weekly values varied significantly with coefficients of variation between 9 and 28%. Therefore, using short term estimates of k_WT to correct the total time radon average determined by passive detectors could lead to bias.

The workplaces also exhibited different seasonal radon patterns, although most were offices with similar schedules. In most pairs of workplaces the monthly averages were correlated very weakly or even negatively. This indicates that seasonal radon variations could be specific to each workplace. The value of k_WT also varied with the season, suggesting that seasonal variations of radon during working hours might differ from those observed with passive integrating detectors.

Overall, long-term follow-up by metrologically assured electronic monitors could help to improve and personalize the estimate of radon exposure of workers. These monitors could potentially support smart anti-radon systems with optimal operation schedules, thereby contributing to the reduction of the energy impact of buildings.

查看原文本刊更多论文

工作场所Rn-222实时监测及工作时间校正系数估算

电子监测仪评价氡暴露的潜力仍未得到充分利用，在实际条件下进行的测试也很少。索非亚大学的氡测量网络对10个工作场所进行了为期一年的连续监测，使用经过校准和计量保证的RadonEye +2监测仪。在7个工作地点，氡在工作时间内的平均活动浓度显著低于总时间平均值。这种差异归因于行为模式。全年工作时间与总平均时间之比（称为工作时间校正系数kWT）为0.71 ~ 0.98。周值变化显著，变异系数在9 ~ 28%之间。因此，使用kWT的短期估计来校正由被动探测器确定的总时间氡平均可能会导致偏差。工作场所也表现出不同的季节性氡模式，尽管大多数是具有相似时间表的办公室。在大多数成对的工作场所中，月平均值的相关性非常弱，甚至呈负相关。这表明，氡的季节性变化可能是每个工作场所特有的。kWT值也随季节变化，表明工作时间氡的季节变化可能与被动积分探测器观测到的不同。总的来说，通过计量可靠的电子监测器进行长期跟踪可以帮助改进和个性化对工人氡暴露的估计。这些监测器可能支持具有最佳运行时间表的智能反氡系统，从而有助于减少建筑物的能源影响。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

求助全文

约1分钟内获得全文求助全文

来源期刊

Radiation Measurements 工程技术-核科学技术

CiteScore

4.10

自引率

20.00%

发文量

116

审稿时长

48 days

期刊介绍： The journal seeks to publish papers that present advances in the following areas: spontaneous and stimulated luminescence (including scintillating materials, thermoluminescence, and optically stimulated luminescence); electron spin resonance of natural and synthetic materials; the physics, design and performance of radiation measurements (including computational modelling such as electronic transport simulations); the novel basic aspects of radiation measurement in medical physics. Studies of energy-transfer phenomena, track physics and microdosimetry are also of interest to the journal. Applications relevant to the journal, particularly where they present novel detection techniques, novel analytical approaches or novel materials, include: personal dosimetry (including dosimetric quantities, active/electronic and passive monitoring techniques for photon, neutron and charged-particle exposures); environmental dosimetry (including methodological advances and predictive models related to radon, but generally excluding local survey results of radon where the main aim is to establish the radiation risk to populations); cosmic and high-energy radiation measurements (including dosimetry, space radiation effects, and single event upsets); dosimetry-based archaeological and Quaternary dating; dosimetry-based approaches to thermochronometry; accident and retrospective dosimetry (including activation detectors), and dosimetry and measurements related to medical applications.