Determination of Be and Na activity in air and rainwater samples by gamma-ray spectrometry.

Natural radionuclides, such as short lived radon daughters and Be, have been analyzed in aerosols at the Nuclear Engineering Department of the National Technical University of Athens (NED-NTUA) since many years, with high accuracy and precision. During this research, an effort to detect Na and determine Be/Na ratio in aerosols is presented. In order to study the role of precipitation in surface air Be and Na activity concentration, a procedure for collecting and analyzing rainwater was developed.

Uncertainty assessment method for the Cs-137 fallout inventory and penetration depth.

Within the presented study, soil samples were collected in year 2007 at 20 different locations of the Greek terrain, both from the surface and also from depths down to 26 cm. Sampling locations were selected primarily from areas where high levels of Cs deposition after the Chernobyl accident had already been identified by the Nuclear Engineering Laboratory of the National Technical University of Athens during and after the year of 1986. At one location of relatively higher deposition, soil core samples were collected following a 60 m by 60 m Cartesian grid with a 20 m node-to-node distance.

Analysis of size-fractionated soil samples by gamma spectrometry.

The purpose of this work was to investigate the effect of particle size on radionuclides in soil, particularly in relation to depth. A set of soil samples at the 0-10cm and 10-20cm depth layers were collected, separated into size fractions using a sieving machine and analyzed by gamma spectrometry to determine (238)U, (226)Ra, (210)Pb, and (137)Cs. Significant variations between different size fractions and depth layers were observed.

Installation and performance testing of an XtRa-NaI(Tl) Compton Suppression System at the NED-NTUA.

This paper presents the Compton Suppression System, recently installed at the Nuclear Engineering Department of NTUA. The system consists of an XtRa Ge detector coupled with a NaI(Tl) guard detector. The electronic set-up allows for the simultaneous collection of both the suppressed and the unsuppressed spectra.

Environmental measurements and inspections on imported foods and feedstuffs in Greece after the Fukushima accident.

The radionuclides released during the accident at the Fukushima Daichii nuclear power plant following the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami on 11 March 2011 were dispersed in the whole north hemisphere. Traces of (131)I, (134)Cs and (137)Cs reached Greece and were detected in air, grass, sheep milk, ground deposition, rainwater and drainage water. Members of Six Greek laboratories of the national network for environmental radioactivity monitoring have collaborated with the Greek Atomic Energy Commission (GAEC) and carried out measurements during the time period between 11 March 2011 and 10 May 2011 and reported their results to GAEC.