HSE performance tests for dosimetry services

In the United Kingdom a dosimetry service that measures and assesses whole-body or part-body doses arising from external radiation must successfully complete a performance test. Results of the performance tests for routine whole-body, routine extremity/skin and special accident dosimetry, carried out over the past six years by the AEA Technology Calibration Service at Winfrith, and DRaStaC, the AWE Calibration Service at Aldermaston, are presented. The test involves irradiating groups of dosemeters to known doses of gamma radiation and determining the bias and relative standard deviations for each dose group. The results are compared with the pass criteria specified by the UK Health and Safety Executive. For routine whole-body dosimetry, both the film badge and thermoluminescent dosemeter (TLD) perform adequately for irradiations between 0.6 and 30 mSv. For higher doses up to 250 mSv, where the slow emulsion of the film is used, the film badge shows poorer performance with a tendency to overestimate the dose. For routine extremity/skin dosimetry there is a wider spread of relative standard deviation results than is seen for routine whole-body dosimetry. This is to be expected since the results will include dosemeters that are based on ʹdisposableʹ TLDs and ones based on lithium fluoride powder in sachets. For special accident dosimetry the dosemeters are tested between 0.26 and 6 Gy. For the highest dose group the film badge invariably underestimates the true dose, whereas the TLD has a tendency to overestimate it.