TY - JOUR
T1 - Evaluation of the Radioactive Material Released in the Harborview Research and Training Building and Some Implications for Emergency Response
AU - Musolino, Stephen V.
AU - Harper, Frederick T.
AU - Blumenthal, Daniel J.
AU - Schwantes, Jon
AU - Buck, Edgar C.
AU - Carney, Kevin P.
AU - Chichester, David L.
AU - Holschuh, Thomas V.
AU - Kane, Joshua J.
AU - Murray, Daniel J.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
Copyright © 2025 Health Physics Society.
PY - 2025
Y1 - 2025
N2 - On 2 May 2019, during the 137Cs source recovery operation, a source capsule in a research irradiator containing approximately 77.1 TBq was breached. Based on a geometric reconstruction analysis of the damage to the capsule, approximately 46.3 GBq (0.04%) was impacted by the chop saw (grinder) inside a mobile hot cell on the loading dock at the University of Washington Harborview Research and Training (HRT) Building. A very small fraction of the material impacted, less than 1%, was released from the mobile hot cell and then to the rest of the HRT Building. The objectives of this project were to assess the accidental release of 137CsCl and its implications related to emergency response methods and the ramifications of 137CsCl transport. The phenomenology of this event was also compared with past alkali halide dispersal events. The vast number of measurements and samples collected by the remediation contractors, the Department of Energy's Nuclear Emergency Support Team, and the small number of retrospective samples collected by the authors informed the analysis. The techniques included (1) autoradiography and electron microscopy of samples collected from the HRT Building and the irradiator, (2) 3D visualization of deposition on surfaces and within the ventilation system, and (3) a study of the damage to the source capsule to evaluate the Cs particle size and particle composition due to the grinding accident. Subsequently, the cesium contaminant transport through the numerous pathways in the building was reconstructed to assess the deposition on surfaces as a function of particle size. The implications for emergency response are relevant to data quality and management. A Data Quality Objective guides data collection methods so that they have appropriate accuracy and precision for the intended application. Recommendations were made with respect to the sample collection protocols and archiving of samples.
AB - On 2 May 2019, during the 137Cs source recovery operation, a source capsule in a research irradiator containing approximately 77.1 TBq was breached. Based on a geometric reconstruction analysis of the damage to the capsule, approximately 46.3 GBq (0.04%) was impacted by the chop saw (grinder) inside a mobile hot cell on the loading dock at the University of Washington Harborview Research and Training (HRT) Building. A very small fraction of the material impacted, less than 1%, was released from the mobile hot cell and then to the rest of the HRT Building. The objectives of this project were to assess the accidental release of 137CsCl and its implications related to emergency response methods and the ramifications of 137CsCl transport. The phenomenology of this event was also compared with past alkali halide dispersal events. The vast number of measurements and samples collected by the remediation contractors, the Department of Energy's Nuclear Emergency Support Team, and the small number of retrospective samples collected by the authors informed the analysis. The techniques included (1) autoradiography and electron microscopy of samples collected from the HRT Building and the irradiator, (2) 3D visualization of deposition on surfaces and within the ventilation system, and (3) a study of the damage to the source capsule to evaluate the Cs particle size and particle composition due to the grinding accident. Subsequently, the cesium contaminant transport through the numerous pathways in the building was reconstructed to assess the deposition on surfaces as a function of particle size. The implications for emergency response are relevant to data quality and management. A Data Quality Objective guides data collection methods so that they have appropriate accuracy and precision for the intended application. Recommendations were made with respect to the sample collection protocols and archiving of samples.
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105003935505
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105003935505#tab=citedBy
U2 - 10.1097/HP.0000000000001978
DO - 10.1097/HP.0000000000001978
M3 - Article
C2 - 40293374
AN - SCOPUS:105003935505
SN - 0017-9078
JO - Health Physics
JF - Health Physics
M1 - 10.1097/HP.0000000000001978
ER -