Methodology Using a Portable X-Ray Fluorescence Device for On-Site and Rapid Evaluation of Heavy-Atom Contamination in Wounds: A Model Study for Application to Plutonium Contamination

• Published in: PloS one Vol. 9; no. 7; p. e101966
• Main Authors: Yoshii, Hiroshi, Yanagihara, Kouta, Imaseki, Hitoshi, Hamano, Tsuyoshi, Yamanishi, Hirokuni, Inagaki, Masayo, Sakai, Yasuhiro, Sugiura, Nobuyuki, Kurihara, Osamu, Sakai, Kazuo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 10.07.2014; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Actinides; Biology and Life Sciences; Blood; Contaminants; Contamination; Earthquake damage; Earthquakes; Emergency medical care; Emergency preparedness; Engineering and Technology; Epoxy resins; Equivalence; Evaluation; Fluorescence; Fukushima Nuclear Accident; Health physics; Health risks; Hemorheology; Humans; Iron; Lead; Lead - analysis; Lead - blood; Medicine; Medicine and Health Sciences; Methodology; Methods; Nuclear accidents; Nuclear energy; Nuclear power; Nuclear power plants; Onsite; Paints; Physical Sciences; Physics; Plutonium; Plutonium - analysis; Plutonium - blood; Portable equipment; Radioactive pollution; Radioactivity; Science; Scientific imaging; Seismic activity; Skin; Spectrometry, X-Ray Emission - instrumentation; Time Factors; Tsunamis; Workers; Wounds; Wounds and Injuries - blood; X ray fluorescence; X-ray spectroscopy; New York; United States > US; Japan
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0101966

Workers decommissioning the Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear power plant damaged from the Great East Japan Earthquake and resulting tsunami are at risk of injury with possible contamination from radioactive heavy atoms including actinides, such as plutonium. We propose a new methodology for on-site and rapid evaluation of heavy-atom contamination in wounds using a portable X-ray fluorescence (XRF) device. In the present study, stable lead was used as the model contaminant substitute for radioactive heavy atoms. First, the wound model was developed by placing a liquid blood phantom on an epoxy resin wound phantom contaminated with lead. Next, the correlation between the concentration of contaminant and the XRF peak intensity was formulated considering the thickness of blood exiting the wound. Methods to determine the minimum detection limit (MDL) of contaminants at any maximal equivalent dose to the wound by XRF measurement were also established. For example, in this system, at a maximal equivalent dose of 16.5 mSv to the wound and blood thickness of 0.5 mm, the MDL value for lead was 1.2 ppm (3.1 nmol). The radioactivity of 239Pu corresponding to 3.1 nmol is 1.7 kBq, which is lower than the radioactivity of 239Pu contaminating puncture wounds in previous severe accidents. In conclusion, the established methodology could be beneficial for future development of a method to evaluate plutonium contamination in wounds. Highlights: Methodology for evaluation of heavy-atom contamination in a wound was established. A portable X-ray fluorescence device enables on-site, rapid and direct evaluation. This method is expected to be used for evaluation of plutonium contamination in wounds.