RADIOACTIVE SOURCES
Applications and Alternative Technologies
Committee on Radioactive Sources: Applications and Alternative Technologies
Nuclear and Radiation Studies Board
Division on Earth and Life Studies
A Consensus Study Report of
THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS
Washington, DC
www.nap.edu
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This activity was supported under award number 2091228 with National Technology and Engineering Solutions of Sandia, LLC. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of any organization or agency that provided support for the project.
International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-309-44791-1
International Standard Book Number-10: 0-309-44791-7
Digital Object Identifier: https://doi.org/10.17226/26121
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Cover: Schematic representation of the operation of gamma, electron beam, and x-ray radiation sources in industrial sterilization. Courtesy of Thomas Kroc, Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, Batavia, Illinois. Reproduced and modified from Miller, 2003, with the permission of AIP Publishing.
Suggested citation: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2021. Radioactive Sources: Applications and Alternative Technologies. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/26121.
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COMMITTEE ON RADIOACTIVE SOURCES: APPLICATIONS AND ALTERNATIVE TECHNOLOGIES
BONNIE D. JENKINS (Chair1), Women of Color Advancing Peace and Security, Washington, DC
THOMAS K. KROC (Chair2), Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, Batavia, Illinois
ROBERT A. BARI, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, New York
DEBORAH W. BRUNER (NAM), Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia
HUBERT K. FOY, African Center for Science and International Security, Accra, Ghana
PAMELA J. HENDERSON, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (retired), Reno, Nevada
P. ANDREW KARAM, Karam Consulting LLC, New York, New York
LINDA A. KROGER, University of California, Davis, Sacramento
MICHAEL O. McWILLIAMS, Stanford University (emeritus), Stanford, California
CATHLEEN (KATE) M. ROUGHAN, International Atomic Energy Agency (retired), Vienna, Austria
STEPHEN J. WAGNER, American Red Cross (retired), Rockville, Maryland
DAVID L. WEIMER, University of Wisconsin–Madison
JOHN A. WILLIAMSON, Florida Department of Health, Orlando
Staff
OURANIA KOSTI, Study Director (from October 2020)
CHARLES D. FERGUSON, Board Director and Study Director (until October 2020)
LAURA D. LLANOS, Finance Business Partner
MELISSA FRANKS, Senior Program Assistant
DARLENE GROS, Senior Program Assistant
___________________
1 Resigned from the committee effective January 13, 2021.
2 Served as the Chair of the committee effective January 21, 2021.
NUCLEAR AND RADIATION STUDIES BOARD
GEORGE APOSTOLAKIS (Chair), Massachusetts Institute of Technology (emeritus), Los Angeles, California
JAMES A. BRINK (Vice Chair), Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston
SALLY A. AMUNDSON, Columbia University, New York, New York
STEVEN M. BECKER, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, Virginia
AMY BERRINGTON DE GONZÁLEZ, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, Maryland
PAUL T. DICKMAN, Argonne National Laboratory, Washington, DC
BONNIE D. JENKINS,1 Women of Color Advancing Peace and Security, Washington, DC
STEPAN KALMYKOV, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow
ALLISON M. MACFARLANE, The George Washington University, Washington, DC
R. JULIAN PRESTON, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
HENRY D. ROYAL, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri
WILLIAM H. TOBEY, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts
Staff
CHARLES D. FERGUSON, Director
JENNIFER HEIMBERG, Senior Program Officer
OURANIA KOSTI, Senior Program Officer
LAURA D. LLANOS, Finance Business Partner
MELISSA FRANKS, Senior Program Assistant
DARLENE GROS, Senior Program Assistant
___________________
1 Resigned from the board effective January 13, 2021.
Acknowledgments
A number of people and organizations contributed to the successful completion of this report. The committee wishes to thank the following:
Sandia National Laboratories (Sandia) and the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) sponsored the study and provided information on activities related to radiological security and promotion of alternative technologies. Jodi Lieberman (Sandia) served ably as the sponsor liaison to the committee and was effective in coordinating several information-gathering presentations for the committee including a virtual tour of Sandia. Dr. Michael Itamura and Dr. Holly Dockery also helped the committee receive the information it needed related to Sandia’s activities and analyses. Dr. Lance Garrison, Kristin Hirsch, and Malika Taalbi provided information to the committee on NNSA activities related to security of radioactive sources, promotion of alternative technologies, and removal and disposition of disused radioactive sources. Dr. Garrison also liaised the committee with other offices within NNSA and other Department of Energy (DOE) offices. We also like to thank Kristina Hatcher, DOE, for helping National Academies staff conceptualize the study and work plan.
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff and particularly Margaret Cervera and George Smith, responded to the committee’s several requests for information related to the agency’s processes for securing and tracking radioactive sources.
The International Atomic Energy Agency staff collectively provided several hours of briefings to the committee on issues related to safety and security of radioactive sources and on alternative technologies used in medical, research, and commercial applications. The committee wants to particularly acknowledge Karen Christaki, Ian Gordon, Muhammad Khaliq, Hilaire Mansoux, Debbie van der Merwe, Joao Osso, Jr., Ronald Pacheco, Rui Cardoso Pereira, Rebecca Robbins, Alessia Maria Rodriguez y Baena, Jose Garcia Sainz, Valeriia Starovoitova, and Muhammad Waseem. Andrew Parker (retired) responded to the committee’s request for information on the sterile insect technique.
The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) and specifically Eric Lemoine and Edmund Wong provided information on CNSC’s tracking system for radioactive sources.
Several medical professionals provided information to the committee on adoption of alternative technologies in low- and middle-income countries; specifically, Dr. Wondemagegnhu Tigeneh and Dr. Eskadmas Yinesu Belay, Black Lion Hospital, Ethiopia; Dr. Eric Addison, Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital, Ghana; Dr. Edgar Ruiz, Dr. Angel Velarde, Dr. Vicky de Falla, Dr. Carlos Garcia, Dr. Javier Figueroa, Kirk Najera, Milton Ixquiac, and Franky Reyes, Liga Nacional Contra el Cancer/Instituto Nacional de Cancerologia, Guatemala; Dr. Taofeeq A.
Ige, National Hospital Abuja, Nigeria; Dr. Magatte Diagne, Aristide Hospital Dantec, Dakar, Senegal; and Mulape Kanduza, Cancer Diseases Hospital, and Prudence Katongo Mutale, National Institute for Scientific and Industrial Research, Zambia. We also want to thank Dr. Andrea Barleze and William Trinca.
Washington University in St. Louis medical professionals shared perspectives on the collaborative project to adopt intensity-modulated radiotherapy in Guatemala. They were Dr. Bin Cai, Dr. Hiram Gay, Dr. Lauren Henke, Eric Laugeman, Dr. Jeff Michalski, and Dr. Jacaranda van Rheenen.
John Miller, International Source Suppliers and Producers Association, and Paul Wynne, International Irradiation Association, arranged several industry briefings for the committee and provided their own perspectives.
Pierre Legoux, World Institute for Nuclear Security, also provided perspectives to the committee and invited a subgroup of the committee to two roundtable discussions organized by the institute.
Tyler Bernstein and Dr. Steven Krahn provided information on Zeno Power System’s next-generation radioisotope power system.
Cindy Tomlinson, American Society for Radiation Oncology, provided information on adoption of electronic brachytherapy in the United States.
Dr. Rajeswari (Raji) Pillai Rajagopalan, Observer Research Foundation, India, provided information on India’s development and use of vitrified cesium-137 for blood and food irradiation.
The committee also thanks the presenters and speakers who gave high-quality presentations during the public meetings as listed in Appendix B.
The committee is grateful to the staff of the Nuclear and Radiation Studies Board (NRSB) of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (the National Academies) for organizing and facilitating this study. Study director Dr. Ourania Kosti and board director Dr. Charles Ferguson organized the committee meetings and assisted the committee with collecting the information it needed to write its report. Melissa Franks and Darlene Gros managed the logistics of the meetings, report review, and publication. Additional National Academies staff assisted with report production: Eric Edkin, Division on Earth and Life Studies, assisted with figure design and Rebecca Morgan and Maya Thomas, National Academies Research Center, assisted with reference checking.
Reviewers
This Consensus Study Report was reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in making each published report as sound as possible and to ensure that it meets the institutional standards for quality, objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process.
We thank the following individuals for their review of this report:
Although the reviewers listed above provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or recommendations of this report nor did they see the final draft before its release. The review of this report was overseen by MARYELLEN GIGER (NAE), University of Chicago, and
RUTH E. McBURNEY, Conference of Radiation Control Program Directors. They were responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with the standards of the National Academies and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content rests entirely with the authoring committee and the National Academies.
Contents
1.2 The Radioactive Source Categorization System
1.3 Common Radioisotopes in Radioactive Sources
1.4 Impact of the 2008 National Academies Report
2 RADIOACTIVE SOURCE USES, RISKS, AND CONTROL
2.1 Radioactive Source Applications
2.2 Radioactive Source Characteristics and Safety and Security Risks
2.3 Radiological Safety and Security Events
2.4 Radioactive Source Control Responsibilities in the United States
2.5 Radioactive Source Incident Tracking
2.6 Physical Radioactive Source Tracking
2.7 Radioactive Source Consequence Analyses
2.8 End-of-Life Management of Disused Radioactive Sources
2.9 Chapter 2 Findings and Recommendations
3 ALTERNATIVE TECHNOLOGY ADOPTION AND DEVELOPMENT
3.1 Alternative Technologies to Radioactive Sources
3.2 Institutional Considerations for Adopting Alternative Technologies
3.3 Economics of Adopting Alternative Technologies
3.6 Alternative Technology Development
3.7 Chapter 3 Findings and Recommendations
4 RADIATION SOURCES AND ALTERNATIVE TECHNOLOGIES IN MEDICINE AND RESEARCH
4.3 External Beam Radiotherapy
4.5 High-Dose-Rate Brachytherapy
4.6 Chapter 4 Findings and Recommendations
5 RADIOACTIVE SOURCES AND ALTERNATIVE TECHNOLOGIES IN STERILIZATION
5.2 Medical Device Sterilization
6 RADIOACTIVE SOURCES AND ALTERNATIVE TECHNOLOGIES IN INDUSTRIAL APPLICATIONS
6.5 Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generators
6.6 Chapter 6 Findings and Recommendations
A BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES OF COMMITTEE MEMBERS AND STAFF
B INFORMATION-GATHERING MEETINGS