Technical and economic comparison of irradiation and conventional methods

Radiation processing is based on the use of ionizing radiation (gamma radiation, high energy electrons) as a source of energy in different industrial applications. For about 30 years of steady growth it became almost routine in a number of industrial processes. The growth resulted, among other things, from the availability of radiation sources matching requirements of industrial production and from the wide basis of fundamental and applied radiation research. The most important, however, was the fact that radiation processing proved in practice to be safe, reliable, easy to control, and economical. In comparison with other competitive techniques, it also offered a better alternative from the viewpoint of occupational safety and environmental considerations. In order to review the current status of comparative analysis of radiation and competitive techniques from the technological and economic viewpoint, the Agency convened an Advisory Group in Dubrovnik, Yugoslavia, 6-8 October 1986. The present publication is based on contributions presented at the meeting, discussions held at the meeting, and subsequent editing work. It is expected that this updated technological and economic comparative analysis will provide useful information for all those who are implementing or considering the introduction of radiation processing to industry. The presented data may be essential for decision makers and could contribute to all feasibility and pre-investment studies. As such, this publication is expected to promote industrially oriented projects based on radiation processing techniques. The actual figures given in the individual reports are as accurate as possible. However, it should be understood that time factor and local conditions may play a significant role and corresponding adjustment may be required. Refs, figs and tabs