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Equations For Radiation Safety

This document provides three equations useful for radiation safety: 1) The radioactive decay equation calculates the activity of a radioactive material over time based on its original activity, half-life, and time elapsed. 2) The distance equation uses the inverse square law to calculate change in dose rate based on distance from a radiation point source. 3) The shielding equation calculates dose rate attenuation from placement of a shield between a radiation point source and detector based on shield thickness and composition.

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Foreman Westerman
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268 views1 page

Equations For Radiation Safety

This document provides three equations useful for radiation safety: 1) The radioactive decay equation calculates the activity of a radioactive material over time based on its original activity, half-life, and time elapsed. 2) The distance equation uses the inverse square law to calculate change in dose rate based on distance from a radiation point source. 3) The shielding equation calculates dose rate attenuation from placement of a shield between a radiation point source and detector based on shield thickness and composition.

Uploaded by

Foreman Westerman
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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EQUATIONS USEFUL FOR RADIATION SAFETY

RADIOACTIVE DECAY EQUATION.

A = A0 e−0.693t/hl
This equation corrects the activity of a radioactive material for decay.
where, A = present activity, A0 = reference activity, t = time elapsed since A0 was assessed,
hl = half-life of radionuclide. Note: t and hl must be in the same units.

Example: Calculate the activity remaining in a vial that originally contained 5 mCi of 32P three
weeks ago. None of the sample has been extracted. [Note: 3 weeks equals 7 days; hl for 32P =
14.3 days.]
A = (5 mCi) e[-0.693 * 21 days /14.3 days] = (5 mCi) e[-1.018] = (5 mCi)(0.361) = 1.8 mCi

DISTANCE EQUATION.
This equation uses the inverse square law to calculate the change in dose rate when a person
moves farther or closer to a point source of x or γ radiation.
2
X2
D1 = D 2 2
X1
where, D1 and D2 = dose rate (or intensity) at positions 1 and 2, respectively;
X1 and X2 = the distance from the source at positions 1 and 2, respectively.

Example: The dose rate is 10 mrem/hour at 2 feet from a 137Cs source. What is the dose rate at 9
feet?
[D2 = 10 mrem/hour; X1 = 9 feet; X2 = 2 feet]
D1 = (10 mrem/hour)(2 feet / 9 feet)2 = (10 mrem/hour)(0.049) = 0.5 mrem/hour

SHIELDING EQUATION.
This equation calculates the attenuation when a shield is placed between a detector and a point
source of x or γ rays. The linear attenuation coefficient (µ) is strongly dependent on the shield
composition and energy of the radiation. [Note: Beta particles are more strongly affected by
shielding because they have charge and mass. The computation is much more complex for beta
particles.]

D = D 0 e − µx
where, D = dose rate (or intensity) with shielding, D0 = dose rate (or intensity) without shielding, x
= thickness of shielding, and µ = linear attenuation coefficient. Note: x and µ must use the
same units.

Example: The dose rate at 2 feet from a 137Cs source is 10 mrem/hour. What is the dose rate at
this point if a 2 inch (5 cm) lead shield is erected between the source and detector?
[µ (for Pb, 662 keV gamma ray) = 1.23 cm-1]
D = (10 mrem/hour) e[-1.23 * 5] = (10 mrem/hour)(0.00213) = 0.02 mrem/hour

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