Evaluation of the feasibility of whole-body counting and 24h urine excretion gamma spectrometry for internal contamination assessment of European Spallation Source releases : Time-window of detection
Ramljak, Belikse LU ; Eriksson-Stenström, Kristina LU and Rääf, Christopher LU
(2026)
In Radiation Measurements
198.
- Abstract
This study theoretically evaluates the detection time window for assessing internal dose following the inhalation of radionuclides released in a postulated accident scenario at the European Spallation Source (ESS). The assessment focuses on gamma-emitting radionuclides and investigates the feasibility of high-resolution whole-body counting (WBC) and gamma spectrometric analysis of 24-h urinary excretion samples. In a study, an adult individual is assumed to inhale radionuclides released at a single point in time near the ESS. No atmospheric dispersion, dilution, or radioactive decay during transport is considered, and all radionuclides are inhaled simultaneously and distributed homogeneously in the body. In the modelling framework,... (More)
This study theoretically evaluates the detection time window for assessing internal dose following the inhalation of radionuclides released in a postulated accident scenario at the European Spallation Source (ESS). The assessment focuses on gamma-emitting radionuclides and investigates the feasibility of high-resolution whole-body counting (WBC) and gamma spectrometric analysis of 24-h urinary excretion samples. In a study, an adult individual is assumed to inhale radionuclides released at a single point in time near the ESS. No atmospheric dispersion, dilution, or radioactive decay during transport is considered, and all radionuclides are inhaled simultaneously and distributed homogeneously in the body. In the modelling framework, uncertainty in the physical and chemical properties of potential releases is addressed by exploring multiple parameter combinations that describe different particle characteristics. Semi-synthetic spectra of radionuclides, selected by their radiotoxicity, were generated by coupling time-dependent whole-body retention and diurnal urinary excretion data from the ICRP Viewer with spectra generated in Nucleonica for representative detector configurations. Minimum detectable activities (MDA) were calculated for hypothetical intake scenarios (1–1000 mSv) and post-inhalation times (1–100 days). These were used to produce time-dependent minimum detectable doses (MDD) to assess possible detection windows. Results show that biokinetic variability is the dominant factor influencing detectability, causing differences of 2–3 orders of magnitude. High-resolution WBC consistently outperforms 24-h urinary excretion measurements in terms of lower MDD values and longer detection windows. These findings highlight the importance of biokinetic characterization for dose assessment and the value of maintaining WBC capability for emergency preparedness.
(Less)
- author
- Ramljak, Belikse
LU
; Eriksson-Stenström, Kristina
LU
and Rääf, Christopher
LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2026-11
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- Accident emergency preparedness, ESS, Inhalation dose, Urinary gamma spectrometry
- in
- Radiation Measurements
- volume
- 198
- article number
- 107790
- publisher
- Elsevier
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:105046615451
- ISSN
- 1350-4487
- DOI
- 10.1016/j.radmeas.2026.107790
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- 65fb6f56-5660-4bc2-aba2-2ba3ce9b3a30
- date added to LUP
- 2026-09-28 15:47:25
- date last changed
- 2026-09-28 15:48:42
@article{65fb6f56-5660-4bc2-aba2-2ba3ce9b3a30,
abstract = {{<p>This study theoretically evaluates the detection time window for assessing internal dose following the inhalation of radionuclides released in a postulated accident scenario at the European Spallation Source (ESS). The assessment focuses on gamma-emitting radionuclides and investigates the feasibility of high-resolution whole-body counting (WBC) and gamma spectrometric analysis of 24-h urinary excretion samples. In a study, an adult individual is assumed to inhale radionuclides released at a single point in time near the ESS. No atmospheric dispersion, dilution, or radioactive decay during transport is considered, and all radionuclides are inhaled simultaneously and distributed homogeneously in the body. In the modelling framework, uncertainty in the physical and chemical properties of potential releases is addressed by exploring multiple parameter combinations that describe different particle characteristics. Semi-synthetic spectra of radionuclides, selected by their radiotoxicity, were generated by coupling time-dependent whole-body retention and diurnal urinary excretion data from the ICRP Viewer with spectra generated in Nucleonica for representative detector configurations. Minimum detectable activities (MDA) were calculated for hypothetical intake scenarios (1–1000 mSv) and post-inhalation times (1–100 days). These were used to produce time-dependent minimum detectable doses (MDD) to assess possible detection windows. Results show that biokinetic variability is the dominant factor influencing detectability, causing differences of 2–3 orders of magnitude. High-resolution WBC consistently outperforms 24-h urinary excretion measurements in terms of lower MDD values and longer detection windows. These findings highlight the importance of biokinetic characterization for dose assessment and the value of maintaining WBC capability for emergency preparedness.</p>}},
author = {{Ramljak, Belikse and Eriksson-Stenström, Kristina and Rääf, Christopher}},
issn = {{1350-4487}},
keywords = {{Accident emergency preparedness; ESS; Inhalation dose; Urinary gamma spectrometry}},
language = {{eng}},
publisher = {{Elsevier}},
series = {{Radiation Measurements}},
title = {{Evaluation of the feasibility of whole-body counting and 24h urine excretion gamma spectrometry for internal contamination assessment of European Spallation Source releases : Time-window of detection}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.radmeas.2026.107790}},
doi = {{10.1016/j.radmeas.2026.107790}},
volume = {{198}},
year = {{2026}},
}