Standards Development

Scope

This standard specifies the techniques for calibration and usage of pressurised, well-type ionisation chambers for activity measurements of radioactive sources. Such instruments are used to determine the activity, expressed in becquerel (Bq), of photon and some medium to high-energy beta emitting radionuclides.This document addresses calibration procedures of ionisation chambers or radionuclide calibrators to be used by equipment manufacturers, national metrology institutes and designated institutes, radionuclide producers, suppliers, distributors, and end-users, like nuclear medicine facilities, industrial or hospital (radio)pharmacies, research laboratories, and power plants.This document provides the quality assurance methods and QC tests for establishing conformity of device acceptability and maintaining acceptable instrument performance. Performance benchmarks vary depending on the application, so information specific to end-users, production-level users, standards laboratories, and instrument manufacturers is provided.The ionisation chamber or radionuclide calibrator can be an instrument that is used as a standalone device, but it can also be integrated in a much larger appliance, such as a laminar air flow cabinet, a fume hood, a hot cell, or a dispensing unit. The instrument can also be equipped with accessories that are essential for the intended use of the appliance that surrounds and incorporates the radionuclide calibrator. The proper use of each of the accessories can be important for the correct use of the radionuclide calibrator and therefore should be considered part of the scope of this standard.The software and computer system(s) that can be used to control the radionuclide calibrator hardware and functioning are considered an integral part of the device and therefore are also considered part of the scope of this standard.The standard seeks to replace the following overlapping and outdated documentary standards for radionuclide calibrators/ionisation chambers: IEC TR 61948-4:2019, IEC 61303:1994, IEC 61145:1992 and the New Work Item Proposal ISO/NP 23557.