Comparison of neutron organ and effective dose coefficients for PIMAL stylized phantom in bent postures in standard irradiation geometries

Abstract

Abstract Neutron dose coefficients for standard irradiation geometries have been reported in International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) Publication 116 for the ICRP Publication 110 adult reference phantoms. In the present work, organ and effective dose coefficients have been calculated for a receptor in both upright and articulated (bent) postures representing more realistic working postures exposed to a mono-energetic neutron radiation field. This work builds upon prior work by Dewji and co-workers comparing upright and bent postures for exposure to mono-energetic photon fields. Simulations were conducted using the Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s articulated stylized adult phantom, “Phantom wIth Moving Arms and Legs” (PIMAL) software package, and the Monte Carlo N-Particle (MCNP) version 6.1.1 radiation transport code. Organ doses were compared for the upright and bent (45° and 90°) phantom postures for neutron energies ranging from 1 × 10− 9 to 20 MeV for the ICRP Publication 116 external exposure geometries—antero-posterior (AP), postero-anterior (PA), and left and right lateral (LLAT, RLAT). Using both male and female phantoms, effective dose coefficients were computed using ICRP Publication 103 methodology. The resulting coefficients for articulated phantoms were compared to those of the upright phantom. Computed organ and effective dose coefficients are discussed as a function of neutron energy, phantom posture, and source irradiation geometry. For example, it is shown here that for the AP and PA irradiation geometries, the differences in the organ coefficients between the upright and bent posture become more pronounced with increasing bending angle. In the AP geometry, the brain dose coefficients are expectedly higher in the bent postures than in the upright posture, while all other organs have lower dose coefficients, with the thyroid showing the greatest difference. Overall, the effective dose estimated for the upright phantom is more conservative than that for the articulated phantom, which may have ramifications in the estimation or reconstruction of radiation doses.