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Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
September 8–11, 2025
Atlanta, GA|Atlanta Marriott Marquis
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The RAIN scale: A good intention that falls short
Radiation protection specialists agree that clear communication of radiation risks remains a vexing challenge that cannot be solved solely by finding new ways to convey technical information.
Earlier this year, an article in Nuclear News described a new radiation risk communication tool, known as the Radiation Index, or, RAIN (“Let it RAIN: A new approach to radiation communication,” NN, Jan. 2025, p. 36). The authors of the article created the RAIN scale to improve radiation risk communication to the general public who are not well-versed in important aspects of radiation exposures, including radiation dose quantities, units, and values; associated health consequences; and the benefits derived from radiation exposures.
Mélany Gouëllo, Jouni Hokkinen, Teemu Kärkelä, Ari Auvinen
Nuclear Technology | Volume 203 | Number 1 | July 2018 | Pages 85-91
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.1080/00295450.2018.1430463
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
This work is a contribution to the work performed in a paper on the understanding of the chemical reactions between cesium iodide and boron oxide in condensed phase, under conditions close to the ones prevailing in the primary circuit of a nuclear power plant in case of a severe accident. The thermal degradation of samples made from cesium iodide or cesium iodide and boron oxide mixtures has been investigated using the techniques of thermogravimetric analysis and differential thermal analysis at temperatures from 20°C to 1000°C. The boron-to-cesium molar ratio in the investigated mixture was fixed at about the value of 5 (B/Cs = 5). Apart from the dehydration of boric acid, evidence is presented for the formation of a vitreous compound at 360°C to 420°C, depending on the atmosphere composition.
Carrier gas composition also seemed to influence the behavior of the precursor mixture. While under air and argon, the recorded thermograms are similar. In the presence of argon/water vapor, a specific behavior and difference on reactivity is noticed, due to the adsorption of water from the carrier gas at the beginning of the process. It was also pointed out that the addition of water or oxygen delayed the glass formation process.