Certified Reference Material IAEA-448: Soil from Oil Field Contaminated with Technically Enhanced Radium-226

To ensure reliable evaluation of potential radiological hazards and proper decision making related to radiation protection measures, the IAEA, through the IAEA Environment Laboratories, supports Member State laboratories in their efforts to maintain readiness and to improve the quality of analytical results. It does so by producing reference materials, by developing standardized methods for sample collection and analysis, and by conducting interlaboratory comparisons and proficiency tests as tools for external quality control of analytical results. The problem of naturally occurring radioactive material (NORM) contamination is known to be widespread, occurring in oil and gas production facilities throughout the world. It has become a subject of attention in many IAEA Member States. In response to this radiological concern, facilities in many Member States have been characterizing the nature and extent of NORM in oil and gas installations and in the surrounding environment, evaluating the potential for exposure to workers and the public, and developing methods for properly managing these relatively high massic activity residues. Within this context, the IAEA Environment Laboratories, in cooperation with the Atomic Energy Commission of Syria, an IAEA Collaborating Centre, have prepared a new certified reference material of soil contaminated with NORM, identified as IAEA-448, certified for the massic activity of 226Ra. This report presents the methodologies used for the production and certification of IAEA-448