A chamber to test the response of radon detectors to changing environmental conditions

Radiat Prot Dosimetry. 2011 May;145(2-3):312-5. doi: 10.1093/rpd/ncr073. Epub 2011 Apr 12.

Abstract

Radon risk assessment is carried out by means of accurate measurements with active or passive instrumentation. All radon detectors must be calibrated and tested using a radon chamber containing a known concentration of radon produced by specific sources of (226)Ra. Some chambers can also be used to test the response of detectors as a function of environmental conditions. In this case, a calibration curve can be inferred with respect to change in one of the considered parameters. For this aim, a new radon chamber was designed and realised to perform calibration and to study the detector response in a large range of variation of the environmental parameters (pressure, 700-1100 mbar; temperature, 5-50°C; humidity, 10-90 %). The first experiments conducted to study the influence of environmental parameters on the detector response have shown flexibility and ease of use of the chamber.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Air Pollutants, Radioactive / analysis*
  • Calibration
  • Environmental Monitoring*
  • Humans
  • Radiation Monitoring / instrumentation*
  • Radon / analysis*

Substances

  • Air Pollutants, Radioactive
  • Radon