The Ionizing Radiation Calibration Laboratory
The Vinca Ionizing Radiation Calibration Laboratory is a Secondary Standards Dosimetry Laboratory (SSDL) which maintains national standards of Gy and Sv for gamma and X radiation in the country. The calibrations are performed in terms of Air Kerma, Absorbed Dose to Water, Personal Dose Equivalent at depths of 10 and 0.07 mm, Ambient Dose Equivalent at a depth of 10 mm, Kerma Length Product and Kerma area product and practical peak voltage, in the fields of radiotherapy, diagnostic radiology and mammography, as well as in radiation protection and individual monitoring. The Laboratory covers the needs for the calibration of ionizing radiation equipment used in radiation facilities, such as in radiotherapy, diagnostic radiology, nuclear medicine departments in hospitals, and industrial facilities.
The Laboratory participates in intercomparison exercises among metrology laboratories in Europe and intercomparisons organized by IAEA, as well as in metrological scientific projects organized by EURAMET. In 2014, the Directorate of Measures and Precious Metals – DMD assigned our Laboratory to be the “designated institute” for ionizing radiation metrology. In 2019 the Calibration and Measurement Capabilities (CMCs) were approved for publication in the International Bureau of Weights and Measures database – BIPM KCDB.
Provision of services
The Vinca SSDL provides services in the fields of radiotherapy, diagnostic radiology, radiation protection and individual monitoring. The services provided have been accredited according to SRPS ISO/IEC 17025:2017 by the Accreditation Body of Serbia. The quality assurance system that has been developed and applied ensures the accuracy and credibility of the dosimetric quantities and methods.
Dosimetric quantities
Calibrations are provided for the following dosimetric quantities: Absorbed dose to water (Gy) and Absorbed dose to water rate (Gy/s) for gama photons
Air Kerma (Gy) and Air Kerma rate (Gy/s) for gamma photons and X-radiation
Dose Area Product (DAP) (Gy mm2) for X-radiation
Dose Length Product (DLP) (Gy mm) for X-radiation
Ambient dose equivalent H*(10) (Sv) and Ambient dose equivalent rate (Sv/h) for gamma and X-radiation
Personal Dose Equivalent at depth 10 and 0.07 mm, Hp(10) (Sv) and Hp(0,07) (Sv) for gamma and X-radiation
Parameters for diagnostic radiology devices: High voltage (kV) in terms of practical peak voltage (PPV)
Secondary standards of high accuracy and quality are used to establish and maintain the above dosimetric quantities. These standards are calibrated in laboratories of higher metrological rank.
Collaborations and intercomparisons
The calibration laboratory collaborates with other ionizing radiation metrology laboratories and is actively involved in international and European projects to ensure the accuracy and credibility of the measurement and calibration methods.
The Laboratory has been incorporated since 1978 into the international network of laboratories of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the World Health Organization (Secondary Standards Dosimetry Laboratory Network). The Laboratory also participates in the intercomparison exercises of the international and European organizations.
Calibrations in radiotherapy applications (link)
In radiotherapy applications the dosemeters and electrometers are calibrated using:
- Air kerma (Kair) for gamma and Χ rays
- Absorbed Dose to water (Dw) for gamma rays
Beam qualities
- 60Co (S-Co)
- X-ray beam qualities: T-series (CCRI radiation qualities)
Traceability
BIPM (International Bureau of Weights and Measures) through IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency, Austria)
Calibration and irradiation for individual monitoring purposes (link)
The calibration of personal dosimeters (TLDs, OSLs, active personal dosemeters, pencil-dosemeters) is performed by irradiating them at user-specified dose levels. Dosimeters are mounted on phantoms.
Dosimetric quantities
Personal Dose Equivalent, Hp(10) (Sv)
Personal Dose Equivalent, Hp(0,07) (Sv)
Beam qualities
137Cs (S-Cs)
60Co (S-Co)
X- ray beam qualities: N-series, between N-40 and N-200
Traceability
BIPM (International Bureau of Weights and Measures) and PTB (Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt) through IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency, Austria)
Calibration for radiation protection (link)
Calibration of survey meters
Dosimetric quantities
Ambient Dose Equivalent, H*(10)
Beam qualities
137Cs (S-Cs)
60Co (S-Co)
X ray beam qualities: N-series, between N-40 and N-200
Traceability
BIPM (International Bureau of Weights and Measures) and PTB (Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt) through IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency, Austria)
Calibrations in diagnostic radiology (link)
The calibration of diagnostic radiology dosimeters and non-invasive tube voltage measuring devices used in radiography, fluoroscopy, mammography, dental radiology, computed tomography…
Dosimetric quantities
- Air Kerma (Kair)
- Kerma Area Product (PKA)
- Kerma Length Product (PKL)
- Practical Peak Voltage (PPV)
Radiation Sources
X-ray Hopewell Designs (nominal tube voltage 225 kVp, anode W)
Qualities of energies used
X-ray beam qualities: RQR series, RQT series, mammography radiation quality W+Al@28 kV
Traceability
BIPM (International Bureau of Weights and Measures) and PTB (Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt, Germany) through IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency, Austria)
Calibration procedure(link)
Calibration services are provided upon request; the procedure includes the following steps:
- User request for calibration, agreement of terms (calibration quantity, radiation quality – gamma or X-radiation, number of dosimeters, deadlines) and official offer
- Communication (via phone or e-mail) with the calibration laboratory in order to schedule the requested work
- Delivery of instruments to the laboratory by post, courier or in person.
- As soon as the calibration has been completed the instrument is either sent back to the customer by post or courier or is picked up by the customer (depending on customer’s request). Payment of a debit amount to a Vinca Institute bank account
- Delivery of the calibration certificates to the customer
Links
Scope of accreditation (http://www.registar.ats.rs/predmet/655/)
Calibration and measuremnt capabilites (CMCs) (https://www.bipm.org/kcdb/cmc/quick-search?includedFilters=&excludedFilters=&page=0&keywords=vins)
IAEA/WHO network of SSDLs (https://ssdl.iaea.org/Home/DOLNETServices)
Contact
T: +381 11 6308438