Radiation Safety
Radiation and Radioactive Materials
Summary
How to manage and work with radiation and radioactive materials.
Who is this for?
- All students, faculty, and staff who work with radioactive materials, with radiation-generating devices, or in radioactive material use areas.
- Lab and research staff.
Managing radiation and radioactive materials
Radiation and radioactive materials include devices like lasers, irradiators, electromagnetic frequency (EMF) devices and high-powered magnets, and X-rays.
Lab and research staff who work with radiation or radioactive materials at Harvard can access EHS resources and support to:
- Manage ionizing and non-ionizing radiation in collaboration with EHS.
- Apply for radiation use permits.
- Complete radiation safety training and learn about common radionuclides.
- Follow the Radiation Safety Manual.
- Minimize exposure and protect everyone who enters your work area.
- Use personal protective equipment (PPE) and dosimeters.
- Prepare your work area and set up shielding.
- Perform routine personal and area contamination surveys.
- Buy radioactive materials.
- Dispose of radiation waste.
Radiation use permits
The Radiation Safety Committee (RSC) manages using radiation at Harvard by issuing radiation use permits. The RSC issues these permits based on Harvard’s radioactive materials license and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health Division of Radiation Control.
Do not use radioactive materials or devices at Harvard without a valid permit. Permits are valid for two years.
Permit holders are primarily responsible for radiation safety in facilities under their control.
To apply for a permit:
- Submit a permit application in the Assessment Inspection Management System (AIMS). Follow the Radiation AIMS User Guide.
- EHS meets with you to review your application, discuss the experiment's radiation safety, and help with lab setup.
- EHS submits recommendations to the RSC, which votes by mail ballot or at the next scheduled committee meeting.
Required training
You must complete Harvard-specific training before using radioactive materials or devices.
- Complete laser safety training before you use Class 3B or 4 lasers.
- Complete laser safety refresher training every two years to renew your training.
Request in-person EMF device safety training for magnets from EHS.
Follow irradiator access requirements.
Lab-made laser microscopes
Complete enclosed laser instruments safety training.
Unmodified, commercially-made laser microscopes
- Complete commercial laser microscope safety training.
- If you service or adjust your commercial microscope's laser or use a lab-made microscope, complete the full laser safety requirements.
- Complete radioactive materials safety training before you use radioactive materials.
- Complete radioactive materials refresher training every two years to renew your training.
Complete X-ray device safety training.
Contact radiation_protection@harvard.edu with questions about your specific setup.
Radiation dosimeters
Lab and other Harvard staff who work with radioactive materials or in radioactive material use areas can work with EHS to monitor radiation exposure using dosimeters.
Dosimeters track and monitor external radiation exposures and help keep exposures as low as reasonably achievable (ALARA). Dosimeters measure external radiation exposure, but they don’t protect you from radiation.
Complete Harvard radiation safety training to learn how to select and use dosimeters.
Buying radioactive materials
EHS must approve all radioactive material purchases before shipment, including free items and shared samples from other universities and institutions.
Harvard funding
Use Buy-to-Pay (B2P) to buy radioactive materials with Harvard funding. EHS reviews and approves purchase requests.
Samples and external funding
Use AIMS to buy radioactive material samples and make purchases with external funding.
Radiation and radioactive material safety at Harvard
EHS support
Contact EHS or radiation_protection@harvard.edu for additional lab safety support, including:
- Bioassays.
- Buying and receiving radioactive materials.
- Cellphone towers and radiofrequency.
- Dosimetry and exposure reports, including dosimeter individual dose reports (IDR) access.
- Exposure limits and external dose minimization principles.
- Radiation safety enforcement policy and terminology.
- Radioactive animal husbandry.
- Radioactive material reference sheets.
- RSC charter and membership.
- Signs and labels.
- Surveys, meters, and probes.
- Terminating radiation permits.