2006 Accelerator Section Special Session: Radiation Safety at Radioactive Ion Beam Facilities¹

Editor’s note: The following is an introduction to Lutz Moritz's presentation given at the 2006 Health Physics Society Annual Meeting in Providence, Rhode Island. Dr. Moritz has graciously agreed to share with us the full slide presentation, with accompanying notes.

In this presentation I attempt to address some of the radiation safety issues that are unique to a new generation of accelerator facilities: the radioactive ion beam (RIB) facilities that have been recently constructed or that are planned for construction in the future. I address each of the following issues briefly:

• What are RIB facilities?
• Why are we building them?
• A short description of existing facilities
• A description of new or planned facilities
• Special radiological issues:
  • The problem of classification of these facilities within their respective regulatory jurisdictions
  • Radioactivity containment
  • Target handling
  • The proposed use of actinide targets
  • Special bioassay requirements arising out of the above

Finally, I present a brief summary.