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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.
Lainsu Kao, Mujid S. Kazimi
Nuclear Technology | Volume 78 | Number 2 | August 1987 | Pages 170-184
Technical Paper | Radioactive Waste Management | doi.org/10.13182/NT87-A33995
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Analyses of the concrete attack and ex-vessel aerosol release using various assumptions for the molten corium/concrete interaction have been performed. The study involved variations in several parameters, such as initial debris temperature, amount of unoxidized zirconium, amount of melt, concrete ablation temperature, and concrete type. At high initial corium temperatures the periodic contact (nucleate-boiling-like) model leads to more rapid concrete attack, higher decomposition gas release, and higher fission product release than the gas film model. At low initial corium temperatures, when a corium crust is initially formed, the various heat transfer models do not lead to significant differences in the fission product releases. Besides the initial debris temperature, the most significant parameter in prediction of the fission product release is the amount of unoxidized zirconium. Among the various fission products, the nonvolatiles, such as lanthanum, are more sensitive to changes in the parameters.