Abstracts ASN Report 2019

radiography is performed in a bunker complying with the applicable regulations. Despite the availability of such facilities, the inspectors still observe too often that parts that undergo radiography on worksites, particularly those scheduled at night in workshops, could have been easily moved to a bunker. Apart from optimising doses for the workers, it would also eliminate the risk of having to temporarily shut down the workshop in the event of an incident. ASN considers that the ordering customers have a key role to play to improve radiation protection in industrial radiography, by favouring industrial radiography services in licensed fixed facilities. ňŅŇĻĸŅŀłŅĸё ŇĻŅłňĺĻ ļŇņ ļŁņŃĸĶŇļłŁņ ļŁ ӅӃӄӌё ĶłŁŇļŁňĸņ Ňł note that the establishing of occupational risk prevention plans between the radiography company and its ordering customer needs to be improved. This shortcoming shows that worksite job preparation is not always commensurate with the risks of such activity. Enhancing the awareness of all the players is therefore a priority. The regional initiatives to establish charters of good practices in industrial radiography implemented for several years now at the instigation of ASN and the labour inspectorate, particularly in areas corresponding to the former regions of Provence-Alpes- ƸŇĸ ķѡ ōňŅё ĴňŇĸі łŅŀĴŁķļĸё ĻƸŁĸі ĿŃĸņё łŅķі Ĵņіķĸі Calais, Bretagne and Pays de la Loire, allow regular exchanges between the various stakeholders. The ASN regional divisions and other regional administrations concerned also regularly organise regional awareness-raising and discussion symposia for which the players of this professional branch show a real interest. ĴņŇĿŌё ļŇ ļņ Ňł ĵĸ ŁłŇĸķ ŇĻĴŇ Ĵņ ļŁ ӅӃӄӋё Łł ļŁĶļķĸŁŇ ŊĴņ ŅĴŇĸķ ĿĸʼnĸĿׇӅ łŅ Ĵĵłʼnĸ łŁ ŇĻĸ ņĶĴĿĸ ļŁ ӅӃӄӌє ŅĸĿĴŇļʼnĸĿŌ ĿĴŅĺĸ number of significant events are still related to loss of control of the source when using a gamma ray projector. However, these events were correctly diagnosed by the operators and the persons concerned did not undertake any inappropriate or prohibited operations. The safeguarding operations were thus better mastered and no secondary incidents were observed. The causes of these events are diverse, the main ones being indicated ļŁ ŅĴŃĻ ӌє ב ِ א XȇƳɖɀɎȸǣƏǼ ǣȸȸƏƳǣƏɎȒȸɀ ב ِ א ِ׏ Áǝƺ ƳƺɮǣƬƺɀ ɖɀƺƳ Industrial irradiation is used for sterilising medical equipment, pharmaceutical or cosmetic products and for the conservation of foodstuffs. It is also a means of voluntarily modifying the properties of materials, for example, to harden polymers. These consumer product irradiation techniques can be authorised because, after being treated, these products display no residual artificial radioactivity (the products are sterilised by passing through radiation without themselves being “activated” by the treatment). ŁķňņŇŅļĴĿ ļŅŅĴķļĴŇłŅņ łĹŇĸŁ ňņĸ ĶłĵĴĿŇіӉӃׇņłňŅĶĸņё ŊĻłņĸ ĴĶŇļʼnļŇŌ ĶĴŁ ĵĸ ʼnĸŅŌ ĻļĺĻ ĴŁķ ĸŋĶĸĸķ ӅӈӃёӃӃӃׇ ń ҎŇĸŅĴĵĸĶńňĸŅĸĿņҏє łŀĸ łĹ these installations are classified as BNIs (see chapter 12). In many sectors, X-ray generators are gradually replacing high-activity sealed sources for the irradiation of products (see point 1.3.1). 246 ASN Report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2019 ׎ ٲ ז SOURCES OF IONISING RADIATION AND THEIR INDUSTRIAL, VETERINARY AND RESEARCH APPLICATIONS xƏǸǣȇǕ ɀƏǔƺ ƏȇƳ ȸƺƬȒɮƺȸǣȇǕ Ə ƬȒƫƏǼɎ הٮ ׎ ژ ɀȒɖȸƬƺ ǣȇ ǕƏȅȅƏ ȸƏƳǣȒǕȸƏȵǝɵ ي Ə ǼȒȇǕ ȵȸȒƬƺɀɀٌ During a maintenance operation in October 2010, the ƬȒƫƏǼɎ הٮ ׎ ژ ɀȒɖȸƬƺ ǼȒƏƳƺƳ ǣȇ Ə Jx דא ׎׎ (*) remained jammed inside the bunker of the Aciéries Hachette et Driout steelworks in Saint-Dizier (Haute-Marne département ). None of the actions undertaken on the electric remote control box or on the cable accessible in the reserve guide tube outside the bunker succeeded in unjamming the source. The dose rate inside the bunker was not compatible with human intervention inside the bunker. It took four years for the companies NUVIA Process and the device manufacturer ACTEMIUM NDT-PES (Non Destructive Testing Products & Systems) mandated by Aciéries Hachette et Driout to develop an intervention protocol approved by ASN. This protocol started to be implemented in ƏɖɎɖȅȇ א ׎׏ ژח ƏǔɎƺȸ ³z ǝƏƳ ǕȸƏȇɎƺƳ Ɏǝƺ ɀɎƺƺǼɯȒȸǸɀ time to make provisions for the funding necessary for this intervention, with ASN having also ensured that access to the bunker was lastingly prohibited. This intervention protocol comprises two phases. The ǔǣȸɀɎ ȵǝƏɀƺ ɯƏɀ ƬƏȸȸǣƺƳ ȒɖɎ ǣȇ…ƬɎȒƫƺȸ א ׎׏ ژח ƫɵ zÈàX Process using remotely controlled robotic tools. During this intervention, the source was located thanks to a gamma camera, the guide tube containing the source was placed on the ground then covered with biological protections using a robot. This lowered the dose rate inside the bunker sufficiently to make a subsequent human intervention possible. The second phase is to be carried out by the ACTEMIUM NDT-PES technicians and should allow the entire guide tube and irradiation device to be dismounted and video-inspected with a borescope, and then connected to a suitable container to make the source safe and be able to transport it. The difficulties and the times required to set up this intervention clearly illustrate the benefits of substituting high-energy gamma radiography technologies, particularly those using ƬȒƫƏǼɎ הٮ ׎ ژ ɀȒɖȸƬƺɀً ƫɵ ɎƺƬǝȇȒǼȒǕǣƺɀ ɎǝƏɎ ƳȒ ȇȒɎ involve ionising radiation, or by electrical devices. ١ RǣǕǝ ډ ƬƏȵƏƬǣɎɵ ƏɖɎȒȅƏɎǣƬ ǕƏȅȅƏ ȸƏƳǣȒǕȸƏȵǝɵ ƳƺɮǣƬƺ٫