Radiation Protection: A Systematic Approach to Safety is a collection of papers that deals with the control, management, and prevention of toxic agents. One paper presents design measures, evaluated in a balanced program, as a practicable method to lessen occupational radiation exposure. Another paper cites the radiation protection aspects practiced in the decommissioning of the Fuel Reprocessing Plant at Trombay, which was designed to chemically process irradiated nuclear fuel. One paper describes a methodology to evaluate a collective dose of exposure through different routes following the release of radioactive material into the atmosphere. These routes include: (1) inhalation of the material from the initial cloud or that arising from the ground; (2) external irradiation from radioactive decay of the material in the cloud or in the air; (3) and as ingestion of radionuclides transferred through the food chain. One paper compares the chemical and radiation hazards to man using an analytical model, based on radiation biological concepts at the molecular level, to show the effects of other agents. The analytical model is also capable of predicting that a synergistic interaction between two different mutagenic agents can occur at the molecular level. The collection will prove useful for nuclear physicists and scientists, occupational health professionals, and researchers in the field of nuclear medicine and engineering.
