Ionizing Radiation Technologies

Does radiation medicine need more regulation or simply better-coordinated regulation? This book addresses this and other questions of critical importance to public health and safety. The issues involved are high on the nation's agenda: the impact of radiation on public safety, the balance between federal and state authority, and the cost-benefit ratio of regulation. Although incidents of misadministration are rare, a case in Pennsylvania resulting in the death of a patient and the inadvertent exposure of others to a high dose of radiation drew attention to issues concerning the regulation of ionizing radiation in medicine and the need to examine current regulatory practices. Written at the request from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), Radiation in Medicine reviews the regulation of ionizing radiation in medicine, focusing on the NRC's Medical Use Program, which governs the use of reactor-generated byproduct materials. The committee recommends immediate action on enforcement and provides longer term proposals for reform of the regulatory system. The volume covers Sources of radiation and their use in medicine. Levels of risk to patients, workers, and the public. Current roles of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, other federal agencies, and states. Criticisms from the regulated community. The committee explores alternative regulatory structures for radiation medicine and explains the rationale for the option it recommends in this volume. Based on extensive research, input from the regulated community, and the collaborative efforts of experts from a range of disciplines, Radiation in Medicine will be an important resource for federal and state policymakers and regulators, health professionals involved in radiation treatment, developers and producers of radiation equipment, insurance providers, and concerned laypersons.

Ionizing Radiation Technologies An authoritative overview of major advances in the application of ionizing radiation technologies to industrial, agricultural, and municipal waste products In Ionizing Radiation Technologies: Managing and Extracting Value from Wastes, a team of expert researchers delivers a broad overview of the value trapped in waste streams and how a strategic application of ionizing radiation technologies can be valuable from both an environmental and an economic perspective. A valuable addition to the discussions around sustainability and green technologies, the book introduces ionizing radiation technologies, including gamma (cobalt-60) irradiation and high and low energy electron beam technologies. The contributions included explore the major advances taking place in the application of ionizing radiation technologies to derive high value end-products from agricultural, municipal, and industrial wastes. Each chapter reviews original research and data and considers likely future directions in research and development. The book also includes: A thorough introduction to the application of ionizing radiation technologies to agricultural waste, including the production of activated carbon Comprehensive explorations of the application of ionizing radiation technologies to municipal waste, including municipal solid wastes and recycling wastewater Practical discussions of the application of ionizing radiation technologies to industrial waste, including textile wastewater management and polymer recycling In-depth examinations of the economics of waste valorization, including several case studies of businesses involved in waste valorization Perfect for consulting engineers and industry professionals involved in waste management and mitigation, Ionizing Radiation Technologies will also earn a place in the libraries of professionals at government agencies, international food organizations, and NGOs focused on waste management, environment sustainability, and urban planning.

The preservation of world cultural heritage is a key issue for maintaining national identity and understanding the influences or exchanges among civilizations throughout history. Development of appropriate preservation techniques that do not compromise longevity or authenticity are therefore of utmost importance. Radiation techniques have demonstrated significant success in the disinfestation and preservation of cultural heritage artefacts, and national and international research programmes have developed harmonized methodologies for such radiation treatment. This publication provides state of the art knowledge on radiation technology applied to the conservation and consolidation of items of cultural heritage and will be of use to collection curators, conservators, restorers, registrars, art historians, archaeologists and conservation scientists active in the various fields of cultural heritage in museums, libraries, archives, archaeological institutions, historical buildings and conservation workshops.

This book reevaluates the health risks of ionizing radiation in light of data that have become available since the 1980 report on this subject was published. The data include new, much more reliable dose estimates for the A-bomb survivors, the results of an additional 14 years of follow-up of the survivors for cancer mortality, recent results of follow-up studies of persons irradiated for medical purposes, and results of relevant experiments with laboratory animals and cultured cells. It analyzes the data in terms of risk estimates for specific organs in relation to dose and time after exposure, and compares radiation effects between Japanese and Western populations.

Radiation Technology for Advanced Materials presents a range of radiation technology applications for advanced materials. The book aims to bridge the gap between researchers and industry, describing current uses and future prospects. It describes the mature radiation processing technology used in preparing heat shrinkable materials and in wire and cable materials, giving commercial cases. In addition, the book illustrates future applications, including high-performance fibers, special self-lubricating materials, special ultra-fine powder materials, civil fibers, natural polymeric materials, battery separator membranes, special filtration materials and metallic nanomaterials. Chapters cover radiation technology in high-performance fiber and functional textiles, radiation crosslinking and typical applications, radiation crosslinking for polymer foaming material, radiation degradation and application, radiation emulsion polymerization, radiation effects of ionic liquids, radiation technology in advanced new materials, and future prospects. Presents a range of radiation technology applications and their application to advanced materials Covers the mature radiation processing technology used to prepare heat shrinkable materials and wire cable materials, describing real-world commercial applications Shows the promising application of radiation technology in preparing high-performance Si and carbon fibers Describes the radiation degradation/radiation effect used to prepare fine powder materials Discusses radiation modification and radiation grafting techniques used to synthesize materials, such as civil fibers, natural polymeric materials and others

This volume provides a broad overview of the latest achievements in scintillator development, from theory to applications, and aiming for a deeper understanding of fundamental processes, as well as the discovery and availability of components for the production of new generations of scintillation materials. It includes papers on the microtheory of scintillation and the initial phase of luminescence development, applications of the various materials, and development and characterization of ionizing radiation detection equipment. The book also touches upon the increased demand for cryogenic scintillators, the renaissance of garnet materials for scintillator applications, nano-structuring in scintillator development, development and applications for security, and exploration of hydrocarbons and ecological monitoring.