• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제54권2호
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• pp.689-700
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• 2022

In the present study, iodine-131 S values (r_T ← thyroid) were calculated for 30 target organs and tissues using the most recently developed Korean reference computational phantoms. The calculated S values were then compared with those of the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) reference computational phantoms to investigate the dosimetric impact of the Korean S values against those of the ICRP reference phantoms. The results showed significant differences in the S values due to the different anatomical/morphological characteristics between the Korean and ICRP reference phantoms. Most target organs/tissues showed that the S values of the Korean reference phantoms are lower than those of the ICRP reference phantoms, by up to about 4 times (male spleen and female thymus). Exceptionally, three target organs/tissues (gonads, thyroid, and extrathoracic region) showed that the S values of the Korean reference phantoms are greater, by 1.5-3.7 times. We expect that the S values calculated in the present study will be beneficially used to estimate organ/tissue doses of Korean patients under radioiodine therapy.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• 제37권1호
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• pp.41-49
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• 2012

한국인 기준남성 체적소형 모의체 HDRK-Man은 서양인과는 구별되는 한국인에 대한 내 외부피폭 관련 방사선방호량을 계산하기 위하여 개발되었다. 하지만 유효선량을 그 정의에 맞게 계산하기 위해서는 반드시 남녀 한쌍의 인체 전산모의체가 필요하다. 이에 본 연구는 HDRK-Man과 한 쌍을 이루는 한국인 기준여성 체적소형 모의체 HDRK-Woman을 개발하였다. HDRK-Woman의 개발을 위하여 한국인 여성사체로부터 획득된 고해상도 연속절단면 컬러해부영상을 사용하여 제작된 체적소형 모의체의 키, 몸무게 및 장기무게를 한국인 기준자료에 맞게 조정하였다. 전반적인 조정 절차는 ICRP의 체적소형 기준모의체 개발 시 사용된 방법에 따라 키 조정, 뼈 무게 조정, 장기무게 조정, 몸무게 조정의 순으로 진행하였다. 특별히 기존에 사용되던 장기무게 조정 방법의 반복된 절차를 간소화하고 단점을 보완하기 위하여 장기무게 조정 프로그램을 자체적으로 개발하여 사용하였다. 최종 완성된 HDRK-Woman의 체적소 해상도는 x, y, z축 방향 순으로 $2.0351{\times}2.0351{\times}2.0747\;mm^3$이며, 체적소 행렬의 크기는 $261{\times}109{\times}825$이다. 또한 유효선량 계산 시 필요한 장기들을 포함한 총 39개의 장기 및 조직이 표현되어 있다. 본 연구는 HDRK-Woman을 MCNPX 몬테칼로 코드에 입력하여 외부에서 입사하는 광자빔에 대한 장기선량을 계산하였으며, HDRK-Man의 장기선량과 합산하여 한국인에 대한 유효선량 환산계수를 계산하고 ICRP 기준남녀 체적소형 모의체의 유효선량과 비교하였다. 고해상도 컬러해부영상을 기반으로 제작된 기준한국인 성인여성 체적소형 모의체 HDRK-Woman은 장기 및 조직이 정밀하게 표현되어 있으며, 일부 조정이 불가능한 장기를 제외한 대부분의 장기 및 조직들이 한국인 기준자료에 정확하게 일치하도록 조정되었다. 따라서 기준한국인 성인남성 체적소형 모의체 HDRK-Man과 함께 한국인에 대한 장기선량 및 유효선량을 정확하게 평가하는데 활용될 수 있을 것으로 기대된다.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• 제36권3호
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• pp.154-159
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• 2011

국내 원전에서는 고 방사선량율 또는 고피폭 예상 방사선작업에 종사자의 가슴과 등에 두 개의 개인선량계를 패용하여 피폭방사선량을 평가하고 있다. 이러한 Two-Dosimeter Algorithm (TDA)으로 현장시험과 심층검토를 통해 NCRP(55:50) TDA를 최적 알고리즘으로 최종적으로 선정하였고, 2006년 이후 원전 종사자의 피폭방사선량 평가 실무에 적용 중에 있다. 한편, 2007년 국제방사선방호위원회(ICRP)는 간행물 ICRP 103을 통해 방사선가중계수 및 조직가중계수와 기준 인체모형팬텀(Reference phantom) 등을 일부 변경한 유효선량 평가방법을 제시하였다. 이에 따라 본 논문에서는 국내원전에서 적용되고 있는 NCRP (55:50) TDA에 대해 ICRP 103 방사선방호 체계 하에서의 계속 적용 타당성을 분석하였다. 그 결과, NCRP (55:50) TDA를 계속 사용하더라도 ICRP 103의 유효선량을 신뢰성 있게 평가할 수 있는 것으로 판단되었다.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제55권6호
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• pp.1949-1958
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• 2023

The International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) Publication 116 was released to provide a comprehensive dataset of the dose coefficients (DCs) for external exposures produced with the adult reference voxel phantoms of ICRP Publication 110. Although an advanced skeletal dosimetry method for photons and neutrons using fluence-to-dose response functions (DRFs) was introduced in ICRP Publication 116, the ICRP-116 skeletal DCs were calculated by using the simple method conventionally used (i.e., doses to red bone marrow and endosteum approximated by doses to spongiosa and/or medullary cavities). In the present study, the photon and neutron DRFs were used to produce skeletal DCs of the ICRP-110 reference phantoms, which were then compared with the ICRP-116 DCs. For photons, there were significant differences by up to ~2.8 times especially at energies <0.3 MeV. For neutrons, the differences were generally small over the entire energy region (mostly <20%). The general impact of the DRF-based skeletal DCs on the effective dose calculations was negligibly small, supporting the validity of the ICRP-116 effective DCs despite their skeletal DCs derived from the simple method. Meanwhile, we believe that the DRF-based skeletal DCs could be beneficial in better estimates of skeletal doses of individuals for risk assessments.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제54권12호
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• pp.4698-4707
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• 2022

As part of the ICRP Task Group 103 project, we developed ten thyroid models for the pediatric mesh-type reference computational phantoms (MRCPs). The thyroid is not only a radiosensitive target organ needed for effective dose calculation but an important source region particularly for radioactive iodines. The thyroid models for the pediatric MRCPs were constructed by converting those of the pediatric voxel-type reference computational phantoms (VRCPs) in ICRP Publication 143 to a high-quality mesh format, faithfully maintaining their original topology. At the same time, we improved several anatomical parameters of the thyroid models for the pediatric MRCPs, including the mass, overlying tissue thickness, location, and isthmus dimensions. Absorbed doses to the thyroid for the pediatric MRCPs for photon external exposures were calculated and compared with those of the pediatric VRCPs, finding that the differences between the MRCPs and VRCPs were not significant except for very low energies (<0.03 MeV). Specific absorbed fractions (target ⟵ thyroid) for photon internal exposures were also compared, where significant differences were frequently observed especially for the target organs/tissues close to the thyroid (e.g., a factor of ~1.2-~327 for the thymus as a target) due mainly to anatomical improvement of the MRCP thyroid models.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제52권7호
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• pp.1545-1556
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• 2020

Recently, the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) has developed the Mesh-type Reference Computational Phantoms (MRCPs) for adult male and female to overcome the limitations of the current Voxel-type Reference Computational Phantoms (VRCPs) described in ICRP Publication 110 due to the limited voxel resolutions and the nature of voxel geometry. In our previous study, the MRCPs were used to calculate the dose coefficients (DCs) for idealized external exposures of photons and electrons. The present study is an extension of the previous study to include three additional particles (i.e., neutrons, protons, and helium ions) into the DC library by conducting Monte Carlo radiation transport simulations with the Geant4 code. The calculated MRCP DCs were compared with the reference DCs of ICRP Publication 116 which are based on the VRCPs, to appreciate the impact of the new reference phantoms on the DC values. We found that the MRCP DCs of organ/tissue doses and effective doses were generally similar to the ICRP-116 DCs for neutrons, whereas there were significant DC differences up to several orders of magnitude for protons and helium ions due mainly to the improved representation of the detailed anatomical structures in the MRCPs over the VRCPs.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• 제29권2호
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• pp.97-104
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• 2004

한국인 고유의 방사선 방호량을 산출하기 위한 목적으로 MIRD형 한국 성인남성 모의피폭체 'KMIRD'를 제작하였다. 모의 피폭체의 외형은 국민표준체위조사에서 제공하는 데이터를 사용하여 제작하였다. 제작된 KMIRD는 MIRDS보다 몸통 두께가 더 두껍고, 팔이 첨가되었다. 보건연구원에서 제공하는 9개 장기의 한국표준 자료와 ICRP23의 자료를 사용하여 모의피폭체의 내부 장기를 모사하였다. KMIRD의 신장은 171 cm, 체중은 63.8 kg이다. 제작된 KMIRD와 몬테칼로 입자 수송 코드인 MCNPX2.3을 이용하여 0.05와 10 MeV 사이의 7개 에너지 영역에 대해서 광자의 선량환산인자를 산출하였다. 피폭 환경은 AP, PA, LLAT, RLAT 4가지 방향에서 입사하는 평행하고 넓은 광자 방사선장으로 모사하였다. ICRP23 표준인 자료를 기초로 제작된 MIRD5 모의 피폭체를 사용하여, 비교 계산을 수행하였다. 장기별 흡수선량환산계수를 비교한 결과 30% 이상의 차이를 보이는 장기도 있었다. 유효선량 환산계수를 비교한 결과, 모든 입사 방향에서 KMIRD가 MIRD5보다 낮은 값을 보였다. 한국인과 서구인간의 체격적인 차이와, 모의피폭체간치 기하학적 구조의 차이가 선량 편차의 주요 원인이다. 모든 장기에 대한 한국 표준자료를 확보하여 개선된 한국인 MIRD형 모의 피폭체를 제작해야한다. KMIRD를 사용하여 내부피폭 선량평가를 수행할 수 있다.

• 대한방사선기술학회지:방사선기술과학
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• 제31권1호
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• pp.41-47
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• 2008

한국 성인 남성 표준인(Korean Reference Adult Male)의 기초 자료를 이용하여 수학적 모의 피폭체(Mathematical Phantom)를 제작하였다. 또한 이를 이용하여 방사성옥소($^{131}I$)의 각 장기별 S-value를 산출 하였다. 산출된 S-value는 기존 ICRP-23표준인에 근거하여 산출한 MIRD 5, 및 ORNL-TM 8381자료와 비교해 보았다. 그 결과 S-value는 한국 성인 남성 표준인에 기초한 모의 피폭체가 높은 값을 나타냈다. 이는 몸통이라는 특수한 공간에 위치하게 되는 선원장기(source organ) 및 표적장기(target organ)가 함유하고 있는 구성물질도 중요하지만 그에 못지않게 이들이 차지하고 있는 위치 및 방사성핵종의 특성 또한 중요하게 작용한다는 것을 알 수 있었다.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• 제45권2호
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• pp.69-75
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• 2020

Background: Dose conversion coefficients (DCCs) have been commonly used to estimate radiation-dose absorption by human organs based on physical measurements of fluence or kerma. The International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) has reported a library of DCCs, but few studies have been conducted on their applicability to non-Caucasian populations. In the present study, we collected a total of 8 Korean pediatric and adult voxel phantoms to calculate the organ DCCs for idealized external photon-irradiation geometries. Materials and Methods: We adopted one pediatric female phantom (ETRI Child), two adult female phantoms (KORWOMAN and HDRK Female), and five adult male phantoms (KORMAN, ETRI Man, KTMAN1, KTMAN2, and HDRK Man). A general-purpose Monte Carlo radiation transport code, MCNPX2.7 (Monte Carlo N-Particle Transport extended version 2.7), was employed to calculate the DCCs for 13 major radiosensitive organs in six irradiation geometries (anteroposterior, posteroanterior, right lateral, left lateral, rotational, and isotropic) and 33 photon energy bins (0.01-20 MeV). Results and Discussion: The DCCs for major radiosensitive organs (e.g., lungs and colon) in anteroposterior geometry agreed reasonably well across the 8 Korean phantoms, whereas those for deep-seated organs (e.g., gonads) varied significantly. The DCCs of the child phantom were greater than those of the adult phantoms. A comparison with the ICRP Publication 116 data showed reasonable agreements with the Korean phantom-based data. The variations in organ DCCs were well explained using the distribution of organ depths from the phantom surface. Conclusion: A library of dose conversion coefficients for major radiosensitive organs in a series of pediatric and adult Korean voxel phantoms was established and compared with the reference data from the ICRP. This comparison showed that our Korean phantom-based data agrees reasonably with the ICRP reference data.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제49권7호
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• pp.1495-1504
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• 2017

In a previous study, a set of polygon-mesh (PM)-based skin models including a $50-{\mu}m-thick$ radiosensitive target layer were constructed and used to calculate skin dose coefficients (DCs) for idealized external beams of electrons. The results showed that the calculated skin DCs were significantly different from the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) Publication 116 skin DCs calculated using voxel-type ICRP reference phantoms that do not include the thin target layer. The difference was as large as 7,700 times for electron energies less than 1 MeV, which raises a significant issue that should be addressed subsequently. In the present study, therefore, as an extension of the initial, previous study, skin DCs for three other particles (photons, protons, and helium ions) were calculated by using the PM-based skin models and the calculated values were compared with the ICRP-116 skin DCs. The analysis of our results showed that for the photon exposures, the calculated values were generally in good agreement with the ICRP-116 values. For the charged particles, by contrast, there was a significant difference between the PM-model-calculated skin DCs and the ICRP-116 values. Specifically, the ICRP-116 skin DCs were smaller than those calculated by the PM models-which is to say that they were under-estimated-by up to ~16 times for both protons and helium ions. These differences in skin dose also significantly affected the calculation of the effective dose (E) values, which is reasonable, considering that the skin dose is the major factor determining effective dose calculation for charged particles. The results of the current study generally show that the ICRP-116 DCs for skin dose and effective dose are not reliable for charged particles.