Development of a new measurement system for radionuclide-contaminated wounds and its measurement methods

Abstract: Due to the current situation of the lack of devices and methods for measuring the internal contamination caused by radionuclides in wounds, which may be caused in spent fuel reprocessing and radioisotope production, we developed a new non-contact measurement system for radionuclide-contaminated wounds with better resolution, moderate size, and easy for clinical application by using the imaging and energy spectroscopy measurement technology to measure the amount and distribution of the contamination retained in wound. With that system，a measurement method to estimate the retention depth and activity of nuclides in the injured part was established by making use of the difference of the absorption attenuation coefficient of X/γ rays emitted by retained nuclides in the injured limb with different thicknesses , which realizes the identification of the retained nuclides in wounds, the measurement of the depth and activity of nuclides retained in different types of wounds, as well as the determination of the characteristics of the distribution of radioactive contamination in wounds. The problem of measuring the characteristics of radionuclide-contaminated wounds are solved fundamentally. This study is of great significance in upgrading the level of existing technology for radionuclide-contaminated wounds at home and abroad, improving the monitoring and evaluation system of internal irradiation, and enhancing the occupational health protection level of radiation practitioners.