[ RadSafe ] IAEA DACs

[bobcherry at cox.net]

May I suggest that one might calculate the actual mass-in-air concentration from the derived (radio)activity concentration using only the half-life of the radionuclide in question, its atomic mass number, and Avogadro's number as inputs (not counting unit conversions if the SI system in not in use)? One might find that for all but the longest-lived radionuclides (for example, uranium-238), the mass-in-air concentration is so low that the chemical toxicity is negligible in comparison with the radiological impact. At that point, one might become a little happier.


> 
> From: James Salsman <james at bovik.org>
> Date: 2006/02/08 Wed PM 12:53:09 EST
> To: radsafe at radlab.nl
> Subject: Re: [ RadSafe ] IAEA DACs
> 
> >... referring to the DAC values given in Table A-II of the annex
> > to IAEA Safety Standards Series No. RS-G-1.2  (Assessment of
> > Occupational Exposure due to Intakes of Radionuclides) see: 
> >   http://www-pub.iaea.org/MTCD/publications/PDF/P077_scr.pdf
> 
> I note with sadness that those derived air concentration exposure 
> limits are based only on radiotoxicity, completely ignoring the 
> chemical toxicity of the isotopes involved; many of which pose 
> a far greater chemical than radiological hazard.