W. GŁUSZEWSKI
Institute of Nuclear Chemistry and Technology, Warsaw, Poland
Email: w.gluszewski@ichtj.waw.pl
20.1. INTRODUCTION
A unique feature of radiation techniques is the possibility of disinfection of a large number of objects in a short time. Gamma radiation is generally used for this purpose, but sometimes an EB can be used [20.1, 20.2]. For gamma radiation, the irradiation time can vary significantly depending on the dose rate [20.3].
When EB accelerators are used, treatment time for an individual object under the EB is of the order of few seconds. Depending on the number of objects, the procedure typically takes from several minutes to several hours (for very large collections of artefacts). EB accelerators have been successfully used for treating low density material and relatively thin objects. The use of an EB for disinfecting artefacts from the Polish Army Museum is described below.
20.2. THE NATURE OF ELECTRON BEAM RADIATION
EB treatment is generally characterized by high dose rates but low penetration. The high energy electrons are generated by accelerators which are capable of producing EBs that are either pulsed or continuous. As the product/
material being treated (disinfected) passes beneath or in front of the EB, energy from the electrons is absorbed by the material. Upon interaction with the exposed products, EB radiation causes ionization and excitation of the molecules, resulting in alteration of various chemical bonds. As with gamma radiation, secondary electrons play a major part in bringing about these transformations, and they cause the same ionizing effect.
While commercial medium and high energy range EB accelerators range in energies from 0.7 to 10 MeV and usually operate at a single energy, advances in technology have resulted in the development of select EB equipment capable of operating at varying energies. For the disinfection of cultural heritage objects,
high energy EBs are typically required to achieve penetration of the product and packaging. When evaluating EB irradiation for the purpose of disinfection, product density, size, orientation and packaging must be considered. In general, EB irradiation performs best when used on low density, uniformly packaged products. Electrons from EB accelerators have a usable penetration of about 3.5 mm in water for each million volts of accelerating potential. A 10 MeV beam will therefore penetrate about 3.5 cm. In lower density materials, the penetration will be correspondingly higher.
20.3. COMPATIBILITY OF MATERIALS WITH ELECTRON BEAM TREATMENT
Most materials making up cultural heritage objects that must be disinfected are not formulated for radiation stability. Some materials have demonstrated less degradation when processed with EB radiation as compared to gamma radiation.
This is due to a significant difference in dose rate between the two radiation technologies. In general, products processed with EB radiation experience shorter exposure time, which could result in a lower oxidative effect on certain materials [20.4]. Some cellulose materials, for example, experience less breakdown and fewer long term ageing effects from processing with accelerated electrons (see Table 20.1).
TABLE 20.1. RADIATION EFFICIENCY OF HYDROGEN EVOLUTION AND OXYGEN UPTAKE FOR CELLULOSE AND CELLULOSE + LIGNIN AT DIFFERENT DOSE RATES
EB (18 000 kGy/h) γ (7 kGy/h)
Cellulose Cellulose + lignin Cellulose Cellulose + lignin
GH2 [µmol/J] 0.334 0.211 0.219 0.206
GO2 [µmol/J] 0.942 0.532 1.72 0.842
20.4. CONTROLS FOR CONSISTENT DOSE DELIVERY
EB disinfection requires the simultaneous control of the beam’s current, scan width and energy, as well as the speed of the conveyor transporting the
feedback circuitry from the beam current. If the beam current changes during processing, the conveyor speed correspondingly changes to ensure that the delivered dose is held constant (Fig. 20.1). After extensive research, it has been established and internationally accepted that keeping the energy of machine sources below the well defined threshold of 10 MeV will ensure that no induced radioactivity is produced in the irradiated object.
FIG. 20.1. Conveyor and aluminium boxes under the scanner of the EB accelerator (Institute of Nuclear Chemistry and Technology (INCT), Warsaw, Poland).
20.5. COMMERCIAL APPLICATION OF ELECTRON BEAM
ACCELERATORS AT RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT AND SERVICE CENTRES
In a typical EB facility designed for high volume processing, products enter on a conveyer through a labyrinth that permits access but stops radiation from escaping (Fig. 20.2). The treatment room houses the accelerator itself and, like the whole installation, is constructed of thick concrete to protect workers from radiation. In the treatment room the materials pass under the accelerator for processing. Once the materials have been ‘sprayed’ with electrons, they continue on the belt until they exit the installation. The equipment area contains the electrical, electronic and cooling equipment required to run the accelerator.
20.6. EXAMPLE OF EMPLOYMENT OF ACCELERATOR INSTALLATION FOR DISINFECTION OF OBJECTS OF HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE In the summer of 1991, a significant number of objects were brought to Poland after exhumation from mass graves in Kharkov and Miednoje. There were: fragments of uniforms, shoes, distinctions, photos and everyday objects.
FIG. 20.2. Block diagram of the accelerator installation at the facility for radiation
It was decided that the items would be transferred to the Museum of the Polish Army, where they would be maintained and the records would be kept. These collections were to be shown in the exhibition of 25 November 1991. In this situation, it was necessary to quickly sterilize the objects so that they could be subjected to research work in the Central Forensic Laboratory of the Police Headquarters in Warsaw and the Institute of Police in Legionowo. The Institute of Nuclear Chemistry and Technology (INCT) in Warsaw was asked to carry out radiation sterilization treatment on the artefacts. After assessment of the size of the objects and the types of materials from which they were made, INCT decided to use an EB for disinfection. The artefacts were brought in bags, arranged in a single layer in aluminium boxes and passed under the EB accelerator (approximately 10 MeV energy and power of 10 kW) using a conveyor system. A typical radiation sterilization dose of 25 kGy was applied. Since the installation is routinely used for sterilization of medical devices, the procedure was carried out after normal working hours (at night) and care was taken to ensure that there was no contact between the medical devices and the historical artefacts.
After radiation treatment, the artefacts were taken to the Museum of the Polish Army and the Police Headquarters, where they were subjected to necessary conservation work.
REFERENCES TO CHAPTER 20
[20.1] CURIE, M., Sur l’étude des courbes de probabilité relatives à l’action des rayons X sur les bacilles, Comptes rendus 198 (1929) 102.
[20.2] GŁUSZEWSKI, W., ZAGÓRSKI, Z.P., TRAN, Q.K., CORTELLA, L., Maria Skłodowska Curie: The precursor of radiation sterilization methods, Anal. Bioanal.
Chem. 400 (2011) 1577–1582.
[20.3] ZAGÓRSKI, Z.P., Sterylizacja Radiacyjna z elementami chemii radiacyjnej i badań radiacyjnych, Instytut Chemii i Techniki Jądrowej, Warsaw (2007) 272 pp.
[20.4] GŁUSZEWSKI, W., Radioliza papieru, Postępy Techniki Jądrowej Z.3 (2014) 23–25.