Radiation Protection Dosimetry Advance Access originally published online on October 30, 2006
Radiation Protection Dosimetry 2007 123(4):529-536; doi:10.1093/rpd/ncl161
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Influence of environmental changes on integrating radon detectors: results of an intercomparison exercise
Institut de Tècniques Energètiques, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya. Avda. Diagonal, 647, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
* Corresponding author: arturo.vargas{at}upc.edu
Received July 27, 2006, amended September 18, 2006, accepted September 23, 2006
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Abstract |
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An intercomparison exercise for passive integrating radon detectors has been carried out with the participation of 12 detection systems from 10 laboratories. The detection systems comprise three commonly used in radon integrating measurements, tracks, activated charcoal canisters and electrets. The exposures were carried out in the radon and thoron chambers at the Institute of Energy Techniques (INTE) of the Technical University of Catalonia (UPC), which is considered to be the Spanish reference chamber. The detectors were exposed to three different temperatures (10, 20 and 30°C) and relative humidities (30, 45 and 80%). Furthermore, in three exposures radon concentration was drastically changed during the exposure period in order to study the efficiency of canister collection. The results indicated that only the charcoal canister response was found to be significantly influenced by external climatic conditions and radon fluctuations. Those track detectors, which are unable to measure thoron concentrations show thoron sensitivity and thus interfere with precise measurement of radon. Detectors for measuring thoron concentration show quite a different response, which could be related to their traceability.