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Conference Spotlight
Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
September 8–11, 2025
Atlanta, GA|Atlanta Marriott Marquis
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The RAIN scale: A good intention that falls short
Radiation protection specialists agree that clear communication of radiation risks remains a vexing challenge that cannot be solved solely by finding new ways to convey technical information.
Earlier this year, an article in Nuclear News described a new radiation risk communication tool, known as the Radiation Index, or, RAIN (“Let it RAIN: A new approach to radiation communication,” NN, Jan. 2025, p. 36). The authors of the article created the RAIN scale to improve radiation risk communication to the general public who are not well-versed in important aspects of radiation exposures, including radiation dose quantities, units, and values; associated health consequences; and the benefits derived from radiation exposures.
T. Roger Billeter, D. P. Brown, W. G. Spear
Nuclear Technology | Volume 6 | Number 1 | January 1969 | Pages 73-80
Technical Papers and Note | doi.org/10.13182/NT69-A28270
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Techniques and instrumentation at microwave frequencies show promise for measuring both temperature and gas coolant impurities within high-temperature nuclear reactors. Temperature is measured as a result of the thermal expansion of a metallic sensor, while impurities can be detected by their effect upon the coolant dielectric constant. An experimental Ni-Cr steel microwave cavity, resonant at 15 GHz, yielded a linear output signal for variations of temperature to 1250°C with a sensitivity of 330 kHz/°C. For gas coolant impurity measurements, both a microwave cavity method and a phase-shift method provided desired speed of response and sensitivity. Tests with the interferometer-type impurity measuring instrument indicate a sensitivity of ∼ 4 × 10−4 degrees phase shift/[(ppm)m] for water vapor in helium gas and a time constant of 1 sec for step changes in impurity content.