ISSN:
1432-2099
Source:
Springer Online Journal Archives 1860-2000
Topics:
Biology
,
Physics
Notes:
Abstract During 1949–1956, about 76 × 106 m3 of radioactive liquid waste containing a total activity of 1017 Bq was discharged into the Techa River by the first Russian industrial nuclear facility Mayak. As a consequence, the population living in the river valley received considerable internal and external radiation doses. The results of a first application of electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) of tooth enamel for a retrospective individual dose evaluation of the residents of the Techa riverside are presented. Three main contributions to the dose absorbed in tooth enamel have been considered: external exposure mainly from the Techa River sediments, internal exposure mainly due to 90Sr; and background radiation including all other sources of exposure except the Techa River. The teeth of 86 inhabitants of the town Kamensk-Uralskii were analysed to determine the age-dependent contribution of the background radiation to the enamel dose. For 22 residents of the middle and lower Techa riverside, measurements of the 90Sr whole-body content and EPR measurements of the absorbed dose in enamel were used to establish a correlation between these two quantities. Finally, absorbed doses in the enamel of five residents of the upper Techa riverside were determined by the EPR method. Contributions of the background radiation and the internal 90Sr contamination were subtracted to determine the external exposure of the residents.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s004110050044
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