Since 2018, Central Research Institute of Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP–CRI) has been operating an X-ray irradiation system with a maximum voltage of 160 kV and 320 kV X-ray tube to test personal dosimeters in accordance with ANSI N13.11-2009 “Personnel Dosimetry Performance- Criteria for Testing”. This standard requires that dosimeters for the photon category testing be irradiated with the X-ray beams appropriate to the ISO beam quality requirements. KHNP-CRI has implemented the fourteen X-ray reference radiation beams in compliance with ISO-4037-1, 2, and 3. When installing the X-ray irradiation system, KHNP-CRI evaluated the uncertainties of dose conversion coefficients for deep and shallow doses, based on “Catalogue of X-ray spectra and their characteristic data – ISO and DIN radiation qualities, therapy and diagnostic radiation qualities, unfiltered X-ray spectra” published by Physikalisch Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB). A CdTe detector (X-123, AMPTEK) with disk type collimators made of tungsten was used to acquire X-ray spectra. The detector was located at 1 m from the center of the target material in the Xray tubes. Six uncertainty factors for the dose conversion coefficients for the fourteen X-ray beams were chosen as follows; the minimum and maximum cut-off energies Emin and Emax, the air density (ρ), the accuracy of the high-voltage of the X-ray tube, statistics of the pulse height spectra and the unfolding method. For example, uncertainty of each quantity for a HK30 beam was calculated to be 0.3%, 2.32%, 0.19%, 1.25%, and 0.13%, and 0.18%, respectively. The combined standard uncertainty for the deep dose conversion coefficient of the HK30 beam was calculated to be 2.67%. The coverage factor corresponding to a 95 percent confidence interval was obtained as k = 1.8 using a Monte Carlo method, which is slightly lower the coverage factor of k = 1.95 for a Gaussian distribution. This seems to result from that two dominant uncertainties, the unfolding uncertainty and minimum cut-off energy uncertainty, follow a rectangular distribution.

The importance of managing the exposure to radiation for radiological technologist is becoming more conspicuous as modern medical care increases the number of hospital exams involving radiation and as work of radiological technologists expand and increase in areas using advanced medical equipment for diagnosis and treatment purposes involving radiation. Measurements for individual exposure dose to radiation can differ according to the equipment and facilities in the work environment and the average number of exposures an individual is involved in. Therefore, systematic and reasonable controls on the exposure dose to radiation can be attained from core data. Shallow dose/Deep dose measurements were taken according to the year of the measurement, the technologist’s occupation post, gender, department, and age over a five year period from January 1, 2003 to December 31, 2007 using a sample of radiological technologists from ten general hospitals throughout S. Korea. When comparing individual exposure dose of each radiological technologist, there was no significant difference in the mean exposure dose according to the year the measurement was taken (p>0.05). Mean exposure dose for Deep/Shallow according to gender showed that men received significantly higher exposure dose than women (p<0.001). Mean exposure dose for Deep/Shallow according to age showed an increase in exposure dose as age decreases, however, it was not statistically significant (p>0.05). According to occupation post, technologists working in nuclear medicine received significantly higher dose than other occupation posts (p<0.001). The results of individual exposure dose were under the dose limits in accordance to all nuclear regulations. Furthermore, since stochastic effects may occur with long-term exposure to low level radiation, individual exposure dose data was thoroughly managed and the principle of As Low as Reasonably Achievable (ALARA) was implemented when establishing the design of this study.