Title: | Accelerator Safety | Publication date: | 9/17/2024 | Effective date: | 1/22/2024 |
D. Policy Statement D1. General D2. Equivalencies and Limited Exemptions D3. Program Elements for all Accelerators D4. Program Elements for Accelerators that Operate above 10 MeV POLICYA. PurposeThis policy describes safety requirements for accelerators as required by Contractor Requirements Document (CRD) in Department of Energy (DOE) Order 420.2D, Safety of Accelerators (Accelerator Safety Order, ASO). B. Persons AffectedAll persons who support an accelerator. This includes document preparation, work planning, maintenance, operation, or decommissioning. C. ExceptionsThis policy does not apply to radiation generating devices that do not meet the definition of an accelerator: “A device and its components employing electrostatic or electromagnetic fields to impart kinetic energy to molecular, atomic, or sub-atomic particles and capable of creating a radiological area as defined by 10 CFR Part 835, Occupational Radiation Protection. Accelerator components include injectors, targets, beam dumps, detectors, experimental enclosures, accelerator enclosures, experimental areas, and experimental apparatus utilizing the accelerator. The accelerator also includes associated support and test facilities, equipment, systems, and utilities necessary to operate the accelerator or utilize the accelerated beam.” If a radiation generating device does not meet the definition of an accelerator, it may still be subject to LBNL’s radiological protection program.  D. Policy Statement
D.1 GeneralAll radiation generating devices that meet the definition of an accelerator must adhere to the safety requirements described in the ASO. These safety requirements are in addition to the requirement for all radiological work activities at Berkeley Lab to be conducted safely and in accordance with applicable regulations and U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) requirements. DOE's basic standards for occupational radiation protection are described in the Code of Federal Regulations, Title 10, Part 835, Occupational Radiation Protection. 
D.2 Equivalencies and Limited ExemptionsAll accelerators that are approved to operate in limited exemptions from parts of the ASO or meet the requirements to allow for defined equivalences must be evaluated on a periodic basis to ensure the accelerators granted the limited exemption or equivalency continue to be operated under the conditions of the approved exemption or equivalency. 
D.3 Program Elements for all AcceleratorsAll accelerators must establish the following program elements prior to commissioning and routine operations: (1) A safety analysis or analysis of postulated worst-case accident for every accelerator (2) Clearly defined roles and responsibilities for accelerator activities including those for training and procedures. LBNL’s Radiation Protection Group is responsible for establishing a current listing/inventory of accelerators managed under ASO and the exemptions or equivalencies to ASO, if applicable. Program elements described in (1) and (2) are satisfied for accelerators at LBNL through the DOE-approved Integrated Safety Management Program, which adheres to 48 CFR 970.5223-1, Integration of Environment, Safety and Health into Work Planning and Execution. This is implemented through the LBNL Radiation Generating Device Program. The program elements must be periodically reviewed and updated, as appropriate (interval not to exceed five years). For Accelerators that operate above 10 MeV, that includes the program elements in D.4. 
D.4 Program Elements for Accelerators that Operate above 10 MeVAccelerators facilities that operate devices above 10 MeV must establish the following program elements in addition to the requirements listed in D.3: - A Safety Assessment Document (SAD) in lieu of the analysis required by (1) in D.3 above.
- A DOE-approved Accelerator Safety Envelope (ASE)
LBNL must establish the following processes for all accelerators operating above 10 MeV: - A DOE-approved Unreviewed Safety Issue (USI) Process
- An Accelerator Readiness Review (ARR) process
DOE approval is required: - Prior to the start of commissioning activities
- Prior to the start of routine operations
- Prior to implementation of a proposed activity if the USI process determines that the proposed activity introduces accelerator specific hazards that are not adequately addressed by the current SAD and approved ASE
- For all exemptions and equivalencies not pre-approved in the ASO
- For all initial ASEs and subsequent ASE updates or amendments
- For the institutional USI Process
- For the restart of any activity or affected operations after a DOE-mandated shutdown because of an ASE violation
- Prior to the start of accelerator decommissioning activities
DOE notification is required: - when any SAD is revised and approved
- upon discovery of conditions with the credible potential to introduce accelerator specific hazards that are not adequately addressed by the current SAD and approved ASE of an accelerator.
E. Roles and ResponsibilitiesRole | Responsibility | Radiation Protection Group (RPG) | - Leads operational aspects of the assurance process
- Establishes the institutional USI Process
- Establishes the institutional ARR Process
- Manages the current inventory/list of accelerators subject to the ASO
| Radiation Safety Committee (RSC) | - Reviews and approves assurance activities
- Establishes the Accelerator Radiation Safety Committee to conduct assurance activities
| Accelerator Radiation Safety Committee (ARSC). | - Ensures that appropriate ASO activities are completed, as necessary, by the applicable accelerator program division
- Makes approval recommendations to the RSC after reviewing submitted documentation from the Accelerator Program Division and RPG
| Accelerator Facility Line Management | - Maintains accelerator safety programs and systems compliant with the ASO and complies with the radiological control limits, requirements, and precautions specified in the accelerator Radiological Work Authorization
- Establishes and maintains a configuration management policy for accelerator safety systems under their purview
- Notifies RPG, in a timely manner of planned accelerator facility and operational changes that may impact safety to allow for coordinated responses from RPG and the RSC
- Plans, conducts, and documents required assurance activities
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F. Definitions/AcronymsTerm | Definition | Accelerator | A device and its components employing electrostatic or electromagnetic fields to impart kinetic energy to molecular, atomic, or sub-atomic particles and capable of creating a radiological area as defined by 10 CFR Part 835, Occupational Radiation Protection. Accelerator components include injectors, targets, beam dumps, detectors, experimental enclosures, accelerator enclosures, experimental areas, and experimental apparatus utilizing the accelerator. The accelerator also includes associated support and test facilities, equipment, systems and utilities necessary to operate the accelerator or utilize the accelerated beam. | Accelerator Readiness Review (ARR) | A structured method for verifying that hardware, personnel, and procedures associated with commissioning or routine operations are ready to permit the activity to be undertaken safely. | Accelerator Safety Envelope (ASE) | A documented set of verifiable physical and administrative requirements, bounding conditions, and credited controls that ensure safety operation and address accelerator specific hazards and risks. | Commissioning | A phase of an accelerator facility operation that is typically used to conduct initial beam testing and/or verify design specifications. Commissioning periods may be tailored to the needs of each facility and there may be great variations in their duration, breadth, and formality, but in all cases, the activities will be bounded by an ASE and preceded by an ARR and DOE approval. | Reviewed Safety Issue (RSI) | The outcome of the evaluation and determination phase of the USI Process | Safety Analysis | A documented process to systematically identify the hazards of a given operation; including a description and analyses of the adequacy of measures taken to eliminate, control, or mitigate the hazards and risks of normal operation; and identification and analyses of potential accidents and their associated risks. | Safety Assessment Document (SAD) | A document containing the results of a Safety Analysis for an accelerator or accelerator facility pertinent to understanding the risks to workers, the public, and the environment of operating the accelerator. | Unreviewed Safety Issue (USI) | An activity or discovered condition with accelerator specific hazards that have yet to be evaluated to determine if the activity or discovered condition introduces accelerator specific hazards that are not adequately addressed by the current SAD and approved ASE | USI Process | The process or methodology used to evaluate/review USIs to determine if the activity or discovered condition is adequately addressed by the current SAD and approved ASE |
G. Recordkeeping RequirementsThe care, maintenance, and disposition of RPG records will be done in accordance with Berkeley Lab records management policies and procedures, as listed in the Requirements and Policies Manual (PUB-201). H. Implementing DocumentsDocument Number | Title | Type | RCM | Radiological Control Manual | Manual |
I. Contact InformationDavid Kestell Radiological Control Manager Environment, Health, and Safety Division Environment, Waste, and Radiation Protection Department djkestell@lbl.gov J. Revision HistoryDate | Revision | By whom | Revision Description | Sections affected | Change Type | 1/22/2024 | 0 | S. Hays | New chapter developed in response to implementation of DOE Order 420.2D (most of the policy contained herein is not new policy - it has been brought together in one place for the first time.) | All | New | 9/17/2024 | 0.1 | S. Hays | Numbering re-formatting | D.3 | Editorial |
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