Radiation Exposures to Public of Chinese Mainland From Man-Made Radiation Sources of Nuclear Energy Generation

An overview was provided for the exposures to the public of Chinese Mainland from man-made radioactive effluents released in the nuclear energy generation of China during 1986—2005. The annual normalized collective effective doses averaged over a five-year period 2001—2005 are 0.81, 5.16×10^-3, 2.09×10^-3, 2.91×10^-3 and 1.84×10^-1 man•Sv/(GW•a）, respectively, for the uranium mining and milling, uranium conversion and enrichment, the fabrication of fuel elements, the operation of pressurized water reactors, and the operation of heavy water reactors. The normalized collective effective doses at some stages of the nuclear fuel cycle in China are much higher than that of the global average value. Thereby, further study and improvement are necessary.