Design of a personnel TLD badge for a power reactor beta/gamma spectrum

This paper reports that three basic challenges are inherent in the design of a thermoluminescent dosimeter for a power reactor beta/gamma spectrum: the dosimeter must meet the current standard for performance in laboratory testing, the dosimeter must properly respond to a power reactor spectrum that is different from that specified in the standard, and the dosimeter must function under field conditions. These challenges were met at the Indian Point 3 Nuclear Power Station by modifying the case of a commercial multi-element TLD to include varying thicknesses of tissue equivalent plastic absorbers over the elements. An algorithm was developed to correct the TLD responses for laboratory testing: however, in field use, shallow and deep dose are read directly from the TLD without the use of an algorithm.