16 Del. Admin. Code § 4465-A-9.0

Current through Register Vol. 28, No. 7, January 1, 2025
Section 4465-A-9.0 - Units of Exposure and Dose
9.1 As used in these regulations, the unit of exposure is the coulomb per kilogram (C/kg) of air. One roentgen is equal to 2.58E-4 coulomb per kilogram of air.
9.2 As used in these regulations, the units of dose are:
9.2.1 Gray (Gy) is the SI unit of absorbed dose. One gray is equal to an absorbed dose of 1 joule per kilogram (100 rad).
9.2.2 Rad is the traditional unit of absorbed dose. One rad is equal to an absorbed dose of 100 erg per gram or 0.01 joule per kilogram. (0.01 Gy)
9.2.3 Rem is the traditional unit of any of the quantities expressed as dose equivalent. The dose equivalent in rem is equal to the absorbed dose in rad multiplied by the quality factor. (1 rem = 0.01 Sv)
9.2.4 Sievert is the SI unit of any of the quantities expressed as dose equivalent. The dose equivalent in sievert is equal to the absorbed dose in gray multiplied by the quality factor. (1 Sv = 100 rem)
9.3 As used in these regulations, the quality factors for converting absorbed dose to dose equivalent are shown in

Table I: TABLE I QUALITY FACTORS AND ABSORBED DOSE EQUIVALENCIES

Type of Radiation Quality Factor (Q) Absorbed Dose Equal to a Unit Dose Equivalenta/
X, gamma, or beta radiation and high-speed electrons 1 1
Alpha particles, multiple-charged particles, fission fragments and heavy particles of unknown charge 20 0.05
Neutrons of unknown energy 10 0.1
High-energy protons 10 0.1
a/ Absorbed dose in gray equal to 1 Sv or the absorbed dose in rad equal to 1 rem.

9.4 If it is more convenient to measure the neutron fluence rate than to determine the neutron dose equivalent rate in sievert per hour or rem per hour, as provided in Part A, subsection 9.3, 0.01 Sv (1 rem) of neutron radiation of unknown energies may, for purposes of these regulations, be assumed to result from a total fluence of 25 million neutrons per square centimeter incident upon the body. If sufficient information exists to estimate the approximate energy distribution of the neutrons, the licensee or registrant may use the fluence rate per unit dose equivalent or the appropriate Q value from Table II to convert a measured tissue dose in gray or rad to dose equivalent in sievert or rem.

TABLE II

MEAN QUALITY FACTORS, Q, AND FLUENCE PER UNIT DOSE EQUIVALENT FOR MONOENERGETIC NEUTRONS

Neutron Energy (MeV) Quality Factora/ (Q) Fluence per Unit Dose Equivalentb/ (Neutrons cm-2 rem -1) Fluence per Unit Dose Equivalentb/ (Neutrons cm-2 Sv-1)
(thermal) 2.5E-8 2 980E+6 980E+8
1E-7 2 980E+6 980E+8
1E-6 2 810E+6 810E+8
1E-5 2 810E+6 810E+8
1E-4 2 840E+6 840E+8
1E-3 2 980E+6 980E+8
1E-2 2.5 1010E+6 1010E+8
1E-1 7.5 170E+6 170E+8
5E-1 11 39E+6 39E+8
1 11 27E+6 27E+8
2.5 9 29E+6 29E+8
5 8 23E+6 23E+8
7 7 24E+6 24E+8
10 6.5 24E+6 24E+8
14 7.5 17E+6 17E+8
20 8 16E+6 16E+8
40 7 14E+6 14E+8
60 5.5 16E+6 16E+8
1E+2 4 20E+6 20E+8
2E+2 3.5 19E+6 19E+8
3E+2 3.5 16E+6 16E+8
4E+2 3.5 14E+6 14E+8
a/Value of quality factor (Q) at the point where the dose equivalent is maximum in a 30-centimeter diameter cylinder tissue-equivalent phantom.
b/Monoenergetic neutrons incident normally on a 30-centimeter diameter cylinder tissue-equivalent phantom.

16 Del. Admin. Code § 4465-A-9.0

23 DE Reg. 306 (10/1/2019) (final)