Performance assessment on continuous air monitors under real operating conditions

In the nuclear industry, workers may be exposed to artificial radioactive aerosols. These aerosols are generally composed of particles with a diameter measuring between 0.1 μm and 10 μm. To protect workers in nuclear facilities, monitors that continuously measure radioactivity in the air are used. The main function of the monitor is to provide real-time measurement of activity concentration. Measurement of aerosol activity concentration can be affected by a number of factors specific to the aerosols and the instrument. The first part of the article will present the general operating principles of continuous air monitors (CAMs) and inherent measurement difficulties, as well as the main standard tests. The second section describes the experimental ICARE facility The ICARE facility generates standard artificial and natural radioactive aerosols for calibrating continuous air monitors under real operating conditions.