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Radiography in Modern Industry

Protection
One of the most important considerations in the x-ray or gamma-ray
laboratory is the provision and exercise of adequate safeguards for the
personnel. Only the general principles of the necessary protective
precautions are discussed in the following.
For details, obtain and carefully study the pertinent National Bureau of
Standards Handbooks, publications from the National Council on Radiation
Protection and Measurement, the Atomic Energy Commission regulations,
and the state and local codes. It is essential that new installations be
constructed in compliance with the provisions of applicable codes and that
existing installations be checked to make certain that they meet all
requirements. It is desirable, and under some circumstances obligatory, to
have a qualified radiation expert examine the radiation installation and
protective measures. In addition, some state and local codes require that
radiation-producing equipment be registered.
Any of the body tissues may be injured by excessive exposure to x-rays or
gamma rays--the blood, the lens of the eye, and some internal organs
being particularly sensitive. Unless exposure to x-rays or gamma rays is
kept at a minimum, the cumulative effect may cause injury to the body,
and it is essential that workers in the radiographic department be
adequately protected against radiation at all times. Furthermore, protective
measures should be so arranged that persons in nearby areas are also
safe. Precautions should be particularly observed when radiography is done
in the work areas of the shop rather than in a specially constructed
department.
PROTECTION AGAINST X-RAYS
Exposure may be caused by the direct beam from the x-ray tube target or
by scattered radiation arising from objects in the direct beam. Therefore,
while exposures are being made, operators should always be protected by
sufficient lead, or its equivalent, shielding them from the x-ray beam, the
part being radiographed, and any other matter exposed to the x-rays.
Protection can be provided in a number of ways, depending on the x-ray
installation and the use to which it is put. Whenever possible, protective
measures should be built in as permanent features of the installation.
Preferably, the x-ray generator and the work should be enclosed in a room
or cabinet, with the necessary protection incorporated in the walls.
The common method is to locate the x-ray tube within a room completely
lined with lead of a sufficient thickness to provide adequate protection. All
the controls are located outside the room.
In the placing of equipment and the design of protective enclosures, keep
certain principles in mind. Careful application of these principles adds to
the safety of the personnel, and may decrease cost.
Both safety and economy benefit if the amount of radiation that must be
absorbed in the outside wall of the enclosure is kept to a minimum. To this
end, the distance from the x-ray tube target to any occupied space should
be as great as possible. Further, if the nature of the work permits, the
direct beam should never be pointed in the direction of occupied areas.
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Ideally, the lead housing around the x-ray tube should protect against all
primary radiation except the useful beam, although this is not always
feasible in practice. The useful beam itself should be limited in cross
section by the use of cones, diaphragms, or other devices.
If there are parts of the x-ray room that, because of the design of the
equipment, can never be exposed to direct radiation, certain economies in
the installation of protective material are possible. Where only scattered
radiation can reach a protective wall, less protection is necessary, since the
intensity of the scattered radiation is much lower than that of the primary.
When advantage is taken of these economies, great care must be
exercised in rearranging equipment, lest it become possible to direct the
full intensity of the x-ray beam against a wall that contains protection
against the scattered radiation only.
Where large numbers of relatively small parts are inspected, the protection
may be in a more compact form such as a lead-lined hood surrounding the
x-ray tube, the specimens, and the film holder, completely enclosing them
for the duration of the exposure. When the exposure is completed, the
hood is opened to allow the removal of the radiographed parts and the
placement of a new batch. The electrical controls are interlocked so that
the x-ray tube cannot be turned on until the hood is closed.
The protective material, usually lead, in the walls of the enclosure, whether
it be a room or a cabinet, should be of sufficient thickness to reduce the
exposure in all occupied areas to the lowest value possible or economically
feasible. Under no circumstances should the exposure to personnel exceed
that permitted by the pertinent regulations, and a lower level than this
should be sought whenever possible.
In some cases, it may be possible for the personnel of an x-ray department,
or other employees, to be exposed to the radiation from more than one x-
ray machine. In such cases, the amount of protection must be increased to
a point where the total exposure in any occupied area is within the
prescribed radiation limits.
If the object being radiographed is too large or heavy to be brought to the
x-ray machine, the radiography must be done in the shop. Under such
conditions, special precautions are necessary. These include a completely
lead-lined booth large enough to accommodate the x-ray machine controls,
the operator, and his assistants. The booth may be completely enclosed, or
open on one side. In any event, the exposure within it should be very
carefully measured. Lead cones on the x-ray machine should be used to
confine the x-ray beam to a certain direction and to the minimum angle
that can be used. Portable screens should be provided to protect workers
nearby. Guard rails or ropes and warnings should be used to keep others at
a safe distance.
In field radiography, protection is usually obtained by distance. Care should
be taken to see that all personnel are far enough away from the radiation
source to insure safety.
MATERIAL AND CONSTRUCTION FOR
PROTECTION AGAINST X-RAYS
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Lead is the most common material used to provide protection against x-

rays. It combines high protective efficiency with low cost and easy
availability. In most cases, recommendations on protective measures are
given in terms of lead thicknesses.
When using lead for protection, care must be taken to avoid any leaks in
the shielding. This means that adjacent lead sheets should be over-lapped,
not merely butted, even if the sheets are to be burned together throughout
the whole length of the joint. The heads of any nails or screws that pass
through the lead should be carefully covered with lead. Extra precautions
should be taken at those points where water pipes, electrical conduits, or
ventilating ducts pass through the walls of the x-ray room. For small
conduits and pipes, it is usually sufficient to provide a lead sheathing
around the pipe for some distance on one side of the lead protective barrier
in the wall. This sheath should be continuous and be very carefully joined,
by a burned joint, to the lead in the wall. Better protection is afforded by
having a right-angle bend in the pipe either inside or outside the x-ray
room and covering it with a lead sheath to a point well beyond the right-
angle bend. The sheath should be carefully joined to the lead in the wall. In
the case of a large opening for ventilation, lead baffles will stop x-rays, but
permit the passage of air. When a large ventilating duct is brought into the
x-ray room, two right-angled bends covered with lead will prevent the
escape of x-rays.
If the x-ray room is on the lowest floor of a building, the floor of the room
need not be completely protected. The lead protection in the wall should
not stop at the floor level, however. An "apron" of lead, continuous with the
protection within the wall, should be placed in the floor, extending inward
from all four walls. The purpose of this apron is to prevent x-rays from
escaping from the room by penetrating the floor and then scattering
upward outside the protective barrier. An alternative is to extend the lead
protection in the walls downward for some distance below floor level. The
same considerations apply to the ceiling if the x-ray room is located on the
top floor of a building. Of course, if there is occupied space above or below
the x-ray room, the ceiling or door of the x-ray room must have full
radiation protection over its whole area.
Although lead is the most common material for x-ray protection, other
materials may be used. In particular, structural walls of concrete or brick
may afford considerable protection and may reduce the thickness, and
therefore the cost, of the lead required. Above 400 kV, concrete is most
used as protective material. The thicknesses of lead required at these
potentials are so great that fastening the lead to the walls becomes a
serious problem, and concrete is often used because of the ease of
construction. In new construction, the use of concrete may have economic
advantages even for protection against radiations generated at
kilovoltages well below 400. State and local codes should be examined, and
any installations checked for compliance with their requirements.
PROTECTION AGAINST GAMMA RAYS
Most gamma-ray emitters used in industry are artificial radioactive
isotopes; the procurement, use, handling, storage, and the like are
controlled directly by the United States Atomic Energy Commission, or
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indirectly by state radiation control laws approved by the Atomic Energy

Commission. It is essential, therefore, that these codes be followed
rigorously.
Gamma rays may be very penetrating. For instance, one-half inch of lead
reduces the intensity of the gamma rays of cobalt 60 only about
50 percent. This makes the problems of protection somewhat different from
those encountered in protection against moderate-voltage x-rays in
general, it is not feasible to provide safety from gamma rays solely by
means of a protective barrier. Therefore, distance or a combination of
distance and protective material is usually required. When radioactive
materials are not in use, protection is usually obtained by keeping them in
thick lead containers, because in this case the total amount of lead needed
is not great.
Because of the great thicknesses of protective materials required for
shielding some gamma-ray sources, distance is the most economical
method of protection while the source is in use. A danger zone should be
roped off around the location of the radioactive material, and personnel
should be forbidden to enter this zone except to put the source in position
or return it to its safe. Suitable conspicuous signs should be provided to
warn away the casual passersby. Tables are available that give data for
calculating the distances from various amounts of radioactive material at
which a radiation hazard exists.
It must be kept in mind that the presence of a large mass of scattering
material, for example, a wall, will materially increase the gamma-ray
exposure. This increase may be as much as 50 percent of the exposure as
calculated without the presence of scattering material. Thus, to be sure
that the radiation protection is adequate, factors other than distance must
be kept in mind when considering personnel protection from gamma rays.
Precautions must be taken in shipping radioactive materials, not only to
protect those who handle them in transit but also to prevent the fogging of
photographic materials that may be transported in the same vehicle. The
Interstate Commerce Commission has established regulations governing
the rail shipments of radioactive isotopes. These provide in part; that the
package shall have such internal shielding that the gamma radiation does
not exceed 10 milliroentgens (mR) per hour at a distance of 3 feet from the
outside of the container; that the radiation intensity at any readily
accessible surface of the package shall not be over 200 mR per hour; that
the package shall carry a prescribed label; and that shipping conditions be
such that unprocessed photographic film traveling in the same vehicle shall
be protected from damage throughout the transit period.
Packages meeting these requirements often consist of a central lead
container for the radioactive isotope surrounded by a wooden or other box
of such dimensions that the radiation at any readily accessible surface is
less than 200 mR per hour. It is advisable to preserve the original package
in case it is again necessary to ship the source.

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