Low Radon Cleanroom for Underground Laboratories.

Aim of a low radon cleanroom technology is to minimize at the same time radon, radon decay products concentration and aerosol concentration and to minimize deposition of radon decay products on the surfaces. The technology placed in a deep underground laboratory such as LSM Modane with suppressed muon flux and shielded against external gamma radiation and neutrons provides "Zero dose" space for basic research in radiobiology (validity of the LNT hypothesis for very low doses) and for the fabrication of nanoelectronic circuits to avoid undesirable "single event effects." Two prototypes of a low radon cleanroom were built with the aim to achieve radon concentration lower than 100 mBq·m in an interior space where only radon-free air is delivered into the cleanroom technology from a radon trapping facility.

Emission probability measurement of γ- and X- rays in Ra-226 and Pb-210 decay.

The emission intensities of 186.21keV, 46.54keV, XL(Bi) and XK(Rn) photons were measured with calibrated HPGe detectors.

Activity standardisation of Pb by 4πα liquid scintillation counting method.

The activity of Pb in a solution with Pb-Po in the radioactive equilibrium was determined through its decay product Po by liquid scintillation counting (LSC), which has, after separation, as a pure α emitting nuclide, detection efficiency practically equal to 1. For the separation of Po from Pb solution, two methods based on precipitation of Pb, and Pb with Bi, leaving Po in the solution, were introduced. The first one was precipitation of Pb in the form of Pb(NO) from a mixture of acetic acid, toluene, water and HNO.

Preparation of (228)Ra standard solution.

For the preparation of a standard solution of (228)Ra, (228)Ra was isolated from (232)Th salt. Two simple methods were developed for Th-Ra separation. Both are based on a very good solubility of thorium nitrate in organic solvents.

Standardisation of ⁶⁴Cu using a software coincidence counting system.

The activity of the radionuclide (64)Cu was determined by the efficiency extrapolation method applied to 4π(PC)-γ coincidence counting. The standardisation was performed by software coincidence counting-a digital method for primary activity measurement that simplifies the setting of optimal coincidence parameters. The γ-ray-energy window, characterised by identical gamma detection efficiency related to the sum of EC and to the sum of beta decay branches, was found.

Activity standardisation of ²²⁶Ra by 4πα liquid scintillation counting method.

Activity of (226)Ra in radium daughter products free solution was determined by 4πα liquid scintillation counting (LSC) method, where the detection efficiency of radium decay is practically equal to 1. The sources were prepared from solution with known (226)Ra mass concentration, from which, immediately before LS counting, (222)Rn and its daughter nuclides were removed by solvent extraction. LS counting results were corrected practically only for a <0.

Improvement of software coincidence counting system for standardisation of EC-β(+) radionuclides.

Since 2000 the software coincidence counting (SCC) system has been used for activity standardisation of about 15 radionuclides. Their activities were determined by the efficiency extrapolation method applied to 4π (PC)-γ coincidence. Some standardisations, mainly standardisations of EC-β(+) radionuclides, required optimal setting of coincidence parameters, for which new procedures based on "the coincidence to total PC count ratios", "a multiple gamma window combined from subwindows fractions" and "a source test for PC detection efficiency " were introduced.

Standardisation of 124SB and 152EU using software coincidence counting system.

Activities of the radionuclides (124)Sb and (152)Eu were determined by the efficiency extrapolation method applied to 4pi(PC)-gamma coincidence counting. The (124)Sb sources were prepared from a solution with the chemical form of 50 microg g(-1) SbCl(3) in 2 M HCl. To inhibit the volatility of antimony chlorides, the sources were slowly dried in a H(2)S atmosphere with relative humidity of 76% for about 48 h.

Radon-in-water standard.

The radon-in-water standard installed at the Czech Metrology Institute in 1994 is based on a generator producing radium-free radon solution and on a measurement system for generator calibration and stability checking. The generator consists of about 6L cylindrical vessel with a solid phase (222)Rn source with 99.9% air emanation power and an external circuit for solution homogenisation.

Standardisation of (56)Co and (57)Co using software coincidence counting system.

Activities of the radionuclides (56)Co and (57)Co were determined by the efficiency extrapolation method applied to 4pi(PC)-gamma coincidence counting. Solutions of (56)Co usually contain a significant amount of (57)Co and (58)Co, so the measured activity of (56)Co requires correction. When the conventional coincidence method is used for (56)Co standardisation, the corrections are derived from the dependence of Proportional Counter (PC) detection efficiencies for (57)Co and (56)Co measured using sources with mixture of (56)Co and (57)Co, which is complicated.

Standardisation of 54Mn and 65Zn using a software coincidence counting system.

The activities of 54Mn and 65Zn have been determined by 4pi(PC)-gamma coincidence counting, with efficiency variation performed by the conventional method of altering the self-absorption in the sources as well as by the computer discrimination method. The standardisation of 65Zn presents some complications requiring optimisation of the gamma-ray energy window settings to achieve a linear efficiency-extrapolation curve. Determination of these optimal settings by the conventional coincidence method is a tedious task.

Monte Carlo calculations of calibration and geometry correction factors of a radionuclide calibrator.

The activity of radioactive pharmaceuticals administered to patients in nuclear medicine is usually determined using well-type high-pressure ionization chambers. For the Bqmeter chamber (Consortium BQM, Czech Republic) a Monte Carlo model was created using the MCNP4C2 code. Basic chamber characteristics for two sample containers of various geometry (a vial and an ampoule) were calculated and compared with measurements.

Application of pulse mixing method in software coincidence counting.

In recent years the software coincidence counting system, designed for absolute activity measurement, has been developed in the Czech Metrology Institute. In this system a true coincidence count rate is calculated from the records of time and amplitude data of individual pulses and may be determined by two different methods. The first one uses a coincidence resolving time, in a manner similar to a classical coincidence measurement.

Software coincidence counting.

A system designed for absolute activity measurement is described using a digital method. The system is based on data recording from a coincidence measurement and subsequent software processing of the data records. The data acquisition device collects amplitudes of individual pulses from analogue-to-digital converters and supplies them with time information.