Geological Explorations - Volcano & Earthquake Research

Radon is one of the most important geological tracers. Being an inert gas, it’s concentration is only governed by production, transportation and decay. Around tectonic faults and geological anomalies, concentration of radon gas can be measured in the soil or on its exit points. Changes in the concentration point unveil processes that take place deeper in the earth’s crust.

Radon can also be used as a tracer to explore underground transportation mechanisms of water or gas. The soil gas nearly always contains thoron likewise what requires the ability to measure radon and thoron separately. Due to its short half-live time, the thoron can only arrive from the direct surrounding to the measuring point and, therefore, is unsuitable as a tracer.

All the measurements must be performed continuously and over very long time periods. During the time, the permanent activation of the radon measuring chamber must not result in a rising background by the long-lived radon daughter Po-210. Meaning alpha spectroscopy is required.

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Ventilation Control to Keep the Legal Radon Reference Value

An efficient and inexpensive measure for reducing the radon concentration in existing buildings is to purposefully vent the rooms. This can be done directly in the working and living rooms or through neighbouring rooms (e.g. cellars) in order to prevent the radon from propagating in the building.

Radiation Protection for the Radium/Thorium Therapy (Xofigo)

Radioactive substances may be released during production and application of 227Th preparations (Xofigo). In that case, the resulting activity concentration in the air cannot be determined by standard algorithms used for long-living radionuclides by air samplers. For that purpose, SARAD in cooperation with the Bayer AG has developed a time and energy spectroscopic procedure which is based on a sampling cycle of 24 hours. The algorithm is available for instruments with a fixed filter (poCAMon)

Radon Personal Dosimetry

The DOSEman and the Radon Scout Professional from SARAD are available as radon personal dosimeters.

Both instruments are easy to handle, robust and can be worn in the pockets of clothing. The dose will be directly indicated on the display. The sensitivity of the Radon Scout Professional is clearly higher than that of the DOSEman. With lower concentrations and longer residence time in radon atmospheres you should give preference to this instrument. On the other hand, the DOSEman offers a very fast response time that triggers an alert immediately in case of high concentrations or an all-clear signal at low concentrations

Radon Protection in Mining, Tunnelling and Water Treatment Plants

Rooms that are not permanently ventilated might build up very high radon concentrations. Typical examples are the tunnel systems in old mining factories or high-level tanks in water works. They will be monitored in cyclic intervals for renovation and cleaning works. Within the framework of a project of the Bundesamt für Strahlen-schutz BfS in Germany (Federal Office for Radiation Protection), we have developed the DOSEman for this and similar applications.

The so-called Radon Sniffing procedure offers a good possibility to search the entry paths such as cracks, shafts and empty pipes etc. The gas to be measured will be directly sucked off at the supposed entering point (e.g. also under floor coverings) and the radon monitor will deliver an acoustic signal of each detected decay. Here the presence of thoron will be used by only analysing the short-lived daughter product Po-216 by means of real alpha-spectroscopy. The response time is circa one minute. That allows to immediately alert on the rise or decrease of the concentration. The RTM 1688-2 is best suitable for such tasks.

Determining the Equilibrium Factor for Radon Based Dose Management

With respect to the new radiation protection law, continuous monitoring with dose management must be established for workplaces where the radon concentration permanently exceeds the legal reference level. The instruments EQF3200 and EQF3220 have been developed to perform such measurements. Both instruments contain a radon measurement chamber as well as a filter/detector combination to determine the daughter product concentration. The construction ensures that both channels are taking measurable values of the same sample of air.

Personal Dosimetry in Uranium Mines

In uranium mines, the employees are faced with an increased exposure by radon but primarily by radioactive dust (LLRD) generated during extraction and transportation of the ore. To determine the inhalation dose, personal air samplers are required sucking the sampled air close to the breathing tract. The poCAMon (personal online continuous air monitor) was designed for this purpose.

Protection of First Responders in Case of Fires, Nusclear Accidents or Terrorism

First responders undergo a heavy personal risk in case of fires, accidents or terror attacks due to the usually confusing situation on site. Especially if they inhale radioactive aerosols unnoticed. With the MyRIAM and the poCAMon SARAD offers two air samplers which have been designed as personal protective equipment for fire fighters, police officers, security personal and armed forces.

The poCAMon is equipped with a wireless interface allowing communication in a range of up to hundred meters. The MyRIAM can be worn in a belt bag, for the poCAMon a chest holster is available