Preliminary assessment of the need for regulation of industrial reservoirs as a source of radiation exposure to humans

Preliminary assessment of the need for regulation of industrial reservoirs as a source of radiation exposure to humans.

Kuryndin A. V., Ponizov A. V., Shapovalov A. S., Timofeev N. B., Ekidin A. A., Antonov K. L.

Industrial reservoirs intended for handling of liquid nuclear waste are areal sources of radionuclide emissions, primarily tritium, into the atmospheric air. The assessment of gaseous tritium compound emissions (as the most contributive radionuclide) due to evaporation and droplet entrainment from the surface of such reservoirs seems of particular relevance. The results of this assessment provide the basis for decision-making regarding the necessity of limiting the emissions of radioactive substances into the atmosphere in compliance with the established regulatory requirements. The algorithm for screening assessment of gaseous tritium compound emissions from the surface of industrial reservoirs, presented in this article, along with the subsequent evaluation of the annual effective dose to the population (without considering dispersion in the atmosphere), allows operating organizations to make a justified decision on the need or refusal to establish the limits for radioactive emissions from such sources based on the results of measured specific activity of tritium in the water of industrial reservoirs where tritium represents the most contributive radionuclide.

► Keywords: radioactive substances, tritium, evaporation, droplet entrainment, emission, areal source of emissions, atmospheric air, annual effective dose.

Article language: Russian. Pp. 31–40. [in Russian]. DOI: 10.26277/SECNRS.2025.115.1.002.