• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.211-217
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• 2006

For more realistic assessment of Korean food chain radiation doses due to the operation of nuclear facilities, it is required to use domestically produced data for radionuclide transfer parameters in crop plants. This paper analyzed results of last about 10 year's studies on radionuclide transfer parameters in major crop plants by the Korean Atomic Energy Research Institute, comparing with the published international data, and consequently suggested the proper parameters to use. The trends of transfer parameter shows normal distributions if we have a lot of experimental data, but some radionuclides showed enormous variations with the environment of experimental, crops and soils. These transfer factors can be used to assess realistic radiation doses or to predict the doses in crops for normal operation or accidental release. Some kinds of parameter can be produced as conservatives or fragmentary results because soil-to-plant transfer factors were measured through greenhouse experiments which sometimes showed improper field situations. But these parameters mentioned in this paper can be representative of the status of Korean food chain than that of foreign country.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.437-446
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• 1993

More realistic calculation models for evaluating man's annual intakes of radionuclides released from operating nuclear facilities were established. For the application of these models, the harvest years of food and feed crops consumed in the year of dose assessment and every year's average concentrations of a radionuclide in air and in water for the whole period of real operation had to be taken into account. KFOOD, an existing equilibrium food chain computer code for the Korean dose assessment, was modified according to the models. Sample runs of the modified code on the assumption of a constant release during 10 years' operation were made with three kinds of the input data files enabling the dose assessment in the improved method, the KFOOD method and another existing method, respectively, and the results were compared. Annual committed effective doses to Korean adult by intakes of Mn-54, Co-60, Sr-90, I-131 and Cs-137 calculated in the improved method were about 11, 2, 5, 60 and 3%, respectively, lower than the corresponding KFOOD dose. To the intakes of the radionuclides except Sr-90 evaluated in the improved method, foliar uptake contributed much more than root uptake did but, in the case of Sr-90, the result was opposite.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.231-242
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• 1976

The effects of temperature and pressure of leaching water on the leaching of radionuclides from bitumen-waste products were studied. The principal results are as follows: The fraction of $^{90}$ Sr and $^{137}$ Cs leached for periods of up to 120 days at 8atm was 2.1$\times$10$^{-6}$ ($\textrm{cm}^2$/g)$^{-1}$ , day$^{-1}$ and 6.02$\times$10$^{-5}$ ($\textrm{cm}^2$/g)$^{-1}$ day$^{-1}$ respectively and at 5$^{\circ}C$, 1.7$\times$10$^{-5}$ ($\textrm{cm}^2$/g)$^{-1}$ day$^{-1}$ and 4.01$\times$10$^{-5}$ ($\textrm{cm}^2$/g)$^{-1}$ day$^{-1}$ respectively. These values were lower than those in atmospheric pressure and room temperature. No diffence in the leaching rate with sea and distilled water was observed for the bitumen-waste products containing 40wt% salts. It appears that these results could be saved by improving safety in the dumping of sea. The effect of the softening point of pure asphalt or bitumen-waste product by $^{60}$ Co irradiation was increased with increasing total dose. Irradiation of asphalts at a total dose of 5.8$\times$10$^{8}$ rad showed no evidence of volume and caused no swelling. The functional groups of blown asphalt by infrared spectra are also identified.

• Journal of radiological science and technology
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• v.38 no.3
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• pp.305-313
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• 2015

After Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster in 2011, study and maintenance of monitoring systems have been made at home and abroad. As concerns about radioactive contamination of water have increased in Korea, update of maintenance of managing radioactive materials in water is being made mainly by Ministry of Environment. In this study, we analysed current state of monitoring system modification in Japan, the country directly involved and neighboring country. According to the result, Japan modified the legislations first. Then Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) provides theoretical background of radiological monitoring. And Ministry of the Environment actually watches state of water pollution in public waters and underground water. Finally related agencies like local government are monitoring current state of radioactive contamination in water environment. By region, local monitoring stations share the investigation of the whole country. Also, additional monitoring is running around nuclear facilities. After Fukushima disaster, monitoring for area near Fukushima is added. Among the reference levels, management target value of drinking water and tap water is 10 Bq/kg, and those of public water and underground water are 1 Bq/L. Measuring intervals varied from every hour to once a year, regularly or irregularly depending on the investigation. The main measuring items are air dose rate, gross ${\alpha}$, gross ${\beta}$, ${\gamma}$ radionuclide, Cs-134, Cs-137, Sr-89, Sr-90, I-131, and so on. In comparison, regulations about general public water in Korea need to be modified, while those about area near nuclear facility and drinking water are organized well. In future, therefore, domestic system would be expected to be modified with making reference to the guidelines like WHO's one. As good case of applying international guideline to domestic environment, Japanese system could be a reference when general standard of radioactivity in public water is made in Korea.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.21-26
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• 2002

For the consideration of the influence on radioactive contamination of foods due to rain during the release period of radionuclides in a nuclear accident, the previous dynamic food chain model was improved. Wet interception coefficients for the agricultural plants were derived as a function of radionuclide and rainfall amount, and mathematical formula of the model was also re-established. In the results for the same time-integrated radioactive concentrations on the ground, radioactive contamination of foods decreased greatly by rainfall, and it decreased dramatically according to increasing rainfall amount. It means that predictive contamination in foods using the previous dynamic food chain model, in which dry interception to the agricultural plants is only considered, can be overestimated. Among radionuclides considering in this study ($^{137}Cs,\;^{90}Sr,\;^{131}I$), influence of rainfall for food contamination was the most sensitive to $^{131}I$, and the least sensitive to $^{90}Sr$.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.65-72
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• 1999

A methodology for determining the optimal durations of the use of contaminated crops as feedstuffs of cattle was designed based on the cost-benefit analysis method. The results of application for pigs, an omnivorous cattle, were discussed for the hypothetical deposition of radionuclides on August 15 when a number of crops are fully developed in Korean agricultural conditions. For investigating the relative cost-effectiveness of the use of contaminated crops as feedstuffs, the net benefit was compared with the case of the direct disposal of contaminated crops. The time-dependent radionuclide concentration in crops after the deposition was predicted using a dynamic food chain model DYNACON. The net benefit from the actions was quantitatively evaluated in terms of cost equivalent of doses and monetary costs of implementing the action. It depended on a number of factors such as radionuclides, variety of crops supplied as feedstuffs and duration of the actions. The use of contaminated crops as feedstuffs was more cost effective for $^{90}Sr\;or\;^{131}I$ deposition than for $^{137}Cs$ deposition.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.50 no.5
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• pp.341-352
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• 2017

Along with Cs-137 (half-life: 30.17 years), Sr-90 (half-life: 28.8 years) is one of the most important environmental monitoring radioactive elements. Rapid and easy monitoring method for Sr-90 using Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) has been studied. Strontium belongs to a bivalent alkaline earth metal such as calcium and has similar electron arrangement and size. Due to these similar chemical properties, it can easily enter into the human body through the food chain via water, soil, and crops when leaked into the environment. In addition, it is immersed into the bone at the case of human influx and causes the toxicity for a long time (biological half-life: about 50 years). It is a very reductive and related with the specific reaction that makes wet analysis difficult. In particular, radioactive strontium should be monitored by nuclear power plants but it is very difficult to be analysed from high-cost problems as well as low accuracy of analysis due to complicated analysis procedures, expensive analysis equipment, and a pretreatment process of using massive chemicals. Therefore, we introduce the Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) analysis method that analyzes the elements in the sample using the inherent spectrum by generating plasma on the sample using pulse energy, and it can be analyzed in a few seconds without preprocessing. A variety of analytical plates for samples were developed to improve the analytical sensitivity by optimizing the laser, wavelength, and time resolution. This can be effectively applied to real-time monitoring of radioactive wastewater discharged from a nuclear power plant, and furthermore, it can be applied as an emergency monitoring means such as possible future accidents at a nuclear power plants.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.40 no.3
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• pp.168-173
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• 2015

The present investigation was planned to estimate potential possibility of striped field mice, Apodemus agrarius coreae (A. a. coreae), as a biological dosimeter in radio-environmental ecology. We bred captured wild A. a. coreae at laboratory and classified taxonomically based on external, cranial and tooth characters. Organ weights and splenocytic apoptosis were observed in order to establish a basic data on radiation biology of A. a. coreae (male, 40 weeks old). The biological effects was observed at 24hrs following irradiation (doses : 0, 0.5, 1, 2 Gy, dose rate : $0.8Gymin^{-1}$, $^{137}Cs$). Only thymus weights was significantly decreased. Splenocytic apoptosis was increased after irradiation. But splenocytic apoptosis was decreased in 0.5 Gy ${\gamma}$-irradiated mice compared to those of 0, 1, 2 Gy (P < 0.05). These data suggested that events in thymus and spleen of Korean dark-striped field mice, A. a. coreae THOMAS, could be a potential radio-biological indicator in human environments.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.50-63
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• 1985

A derivation of new release limit, named Derived Release Limit(DRL), into the atomsphere from a reference nuclear power plant has been performed on the basis of the new system of dose limitation recommended by the ICRP, instead of the (MPC)a limit which has been currently used until now as a general standard for radioactive effluents in Korea. In DRL Calculation, a Concentration Factor Method was applied, in which the concentrations of long-term routinely released radionuclides were in equilibrium with dose in environment under the steady state condition. The analytical model used in the exposure pathway analysis was the one which has been suggested by the USNRC and the exposure limits applied in this analysis were those recommended by the USEPA lately. In the exposure pathway analysis, all of the pathways are not considered and some may be excluded either because they are not applicable or their contribution to the exposure is insignificant compared with other pathways. In case, the environmental model developed in this study was applied to the Kori nuclear power plant as the reference power plant, the highest DRL value was calculated to be as $9.10{\times}10^6Ci/yr$ for Kr-85 in external whole body exposure from the semi-infinite radioactive cloud, while the lowest DRL value was observed 3.64Ci/yr for Co-60 in external whole body exposure from the contaminated ground, by the radioactive particulates. The most critical exposure pathway to an individual in the unrestricted area of interest (Kilchun-Ri, 1.3 km to the north of the release point) seems to be the exposure pathway from the contaminated ground and the most critical radionuclide in all pathways appears to be Co-60 in the same pathway. When comparing the actual release rate from KNU-l in 1982 with the DRL's obtained here the release of radionuclides from KNU-1 were much lower than the DRL's and it could be conclued that the exposure to an individual had been kept below the exposure limits recommended by the USEPA.