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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.
I. L. Rakhno, N. V. Mokhov, S. I. Striganov
Nuclear Technology | Volume 168 | Number 3 | December 2009 | Pages 689-693
Accelerators | Special Issue on the 11th International Conference on Radiation Shielding and the 15th Topical Meeting of the Radiation Protection and Shielding Division (PART 3) / Radiation Measurements and Instrumentation | doi.org/10.13182/NT09-A9291
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A method to calculate residual activation of accelerator components is presented. A model for residual dose estimation for thick objects made of arbitrary composite materials for arbitrary irradiation and cooling times is employed in the study. A scaling procedure for applying the model to thin objects with linear dimensions less than a fraction of a nuclear interaction length is described. The scaling has been performed for various materials, and corresponding factors have been determined for objects of certain shapes (slab, solid, and hollow cylinder) that can serve as models for beam pipes, magnets, and collimators. Both contact residual dose and dose attenuation in the air outside irradiated objects are considered. A relation between continuous and pulsed irradiation is accounted for as well.