Ambient and Personal Effective Dose Assessment at the International Arrival Hall of Taichung Airport in Taiwan

Abstract

Ambient monitor and phantom studies were carried out in the international arrival hall of Taichung Airport, Taiwan. A total of 172 thermoluminescent dosimeters (TLDs) were used for ambient monitoring. The sites of the export conveyor, the outward face of the x-ray scanning chamber, and the x-ray image monitor were assessed as low-radiation areas because the possible annual effective doses were 0.12, 0.39, and 0.16 mSv, all less than 1 mSv per year. In addition, a phantom filled with 126 TLDs was used to simulate a 10-year-old child being exposed by the x-ray baggage scanner. The effective dose was evaluated as 3.39 ± 0.33 μSv/scan, using the tissue weighting factor of the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) 103 report. This figure is a useful reference should a person be accidentally scanned by the x-ray baggage scanner.

Keywords:

• airport
• dose
• TLD
• x-ray scan

Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to the staffs of Taichung customs office for their generous support in this study.