Development of a fuzzy expert system to study the effectiveness of countermeasure during a nuclear emergency

The primary aim of radiological or nuclear emergency preparedness is to mitigate the consequences of the accident by reducing the radiation exposure to the site personnel and members of the public. Countermeasures such as sheltering, evacuation, etc. are implemented to reduce the exposure. However, the selection of the effective countermeasure is fuzzy due to the vagueness of the countermeasure variables. Fuzzy set theoretic approach has been devised for justifying an effective countermeasure. Effectiveness of countermeasure is quantified on the basis of fuzzy compositions between averted dose and countermeasure variables. The paper describes the development of a fuzzy expert system which performs this task. (author)