[ RadSafe ] Radiation in landfills

Tue Jul 17 14:01:22 CDT 2007

Bob, do you happen to know the details of the tritium foil used in High 
Voltage detectors ( e.g. 3M model 703)?
Specifically the chemical makeup?

Not a big dose in there <200 uCi ( microCurie), but it is fully exposed so 
that the low energy betas are free in the air, instead of being
blocked by the borosilicate glass as in radio-luminescent products.

Another Trit question for the group: The low energy betas are blocked by the 
containing capsule in the self-luminescent light products, but an X-Ray 
signature can often be detected. We are assuming Bremsstrahlung, is there 
any other reason for this>? Ka shell "Characteristic X-rays" from?? maybe?
George DowellNLNLNew London Nucleonics Lab56791 Rivere Au Sel Pl.New London, 
MO 63459GEOelectronics at Netscape.com573-221-3418 ----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Robert D Gallagher" <rdgallagher at nssihouston.com>
To: "John R Johnson" <idias at interchange.ubc.ca>; "Brennan, Mike (DOH)" 
<Mike.Brennan at DOH.WA.GOV>; <radsafe at radlab.nl>
Sent: Tuesday, July 17, 2007 1:36 PM
Subject: RE: [ RadSafe ] Radiation in landfills

> Anyone that has worked with liquid scintillation recognizes the potential
> for chemoluminescence. We have found that WD-40 is one of the worst
> problems. Other ring compounds seem to give similar readings. A quick 
> check
> for chemo is to count the sample and then turn out the room lights and do
> multiple counts on the sample. If its chemo, the count will begin to drop.
> The change rate is dependent on the particular light sensitive compound.
>
> In the US also, the biomedical waste rule allows Tritium at <.05 uCi/gm to
> be disposed in local land fills without regard to the radioactivity. One
> company I know of in the US is allowed to release thousands of Curies per
> year into the air from their burning operations.
>
> As a result, pointing the finger at exit signs and watch dials is rather
> simplistic.
>
> Tritium is seen by most as a minimal damage radionuclide. With such broad
> usage, finding the material in landfills comes as no surprise.The
> benefit/risk is good for Tritium.
>
> The same is true for the Am-241 in smoke detectors. If Am241 moved in the
> environment like Tritium does, we would have a much bigger problem. 
> Luckily,
> most persons use the smoke detectors and never realize they contain
> radioactive material.
>
>
> Bob Gallagher
> NSSI
> 713 641-0391
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: radsafe-bounces at radlab.nl [mailto:radsafe-bounces at radlab.nl]On
> Behalf Of John R Johnson
> Sent: Tuesday, July 17, 2007 11:40 AM
> To: Brennan, Mike (DOH); radsafe at radlab.nl
> Subject: Re: [ RadSafe ] Radiation in landfills
>
>
> Mike
>
> Tritium as HTO has a 0.97 10 day and 0.03 40 day half life in adults
> (according to the ICRP Pub. 67)  but tritium "organically bound" to carbon
> (OBT) has a  0.5 10 days and 0.5 40 days half life  in adults. I don't 
> know
> what the tritium gas will "convert to" in the garbage.
>
> John
> ***************
> John R Johnson, PhD
> CEO, IDIAS, Inc.
> Vancouver, B. C.
> Canada
> (604) 222-9840
> idias at interchange.ubc.ca
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Brennan, Mike (DOH)" <Mike.Brennan at DOH.WA.GOV>
> To: <radsafe at radlab.nl>
> Sent: Tuesday, July 17, 2007 9:12 AM
> Subject: RE: [ RadSafe ] Radiation in landfills
>
>
> Hi, Franz.
>
> I have on several occasions sampled leachete from land fills, and our lab
> has reported finding tritium at puzzling concentrations.  The consensus is
> that the tritium comes from exit signs that were disposed of in the
> landfill, and on which the tubes containing the tritium gas were broken 
> when
> the garbage was compacted.
>
> While I don't have a solid reason, I remain dubious of this explanation. 
> It
> doesn't "feel" right to me.  I asked the chemists about contaminates that
> might give false positives some how, and was told that the lab was 
> confident
> that was not the case.  I remain very open to suggestions beyond exit 
> signs
> and watch hands, or, as one of our activist groups claims, midnight 
> dumpings
> of drums of reactor primary coolant water into the landfill.
>
> I am, however, quite satisfied of one thing: the tritium in the leachete
> does not constitute a public health risk.  Should someone be drinking 
> enough
> leachete to gain a noticeable body burden (and do it on a regular basis, 
> as
> tritium has a 12 day biological half-life, and they would need to 
> replenish
> often), they should live so long that the rad becomes a health issue.  The
> chemical hazards are far greater, though my bet is that the pathogens 
> would
> get them first.  That they would drink landfill leachete in the first 
> place
> hints at some non-trivial mental health issues that I would really have
> someone look into.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: radsafe-bounces at radlab.nl [mailto:radsafe-bounces at radlab.nl] On 
> Behalf
> Of Franz Schönhofer
> Sent: Sunday, July 15, 2007 12:55 PM
> To: BLHamrick at aol.com; sandyfl at cox.net; radsafe at radlab.nl; 
> powernet at hps1.org
> Subject: AW: [ RadSafe ] Radiation in landfills
>
> Barbara and RADSAFErs,
>
> Additionally to the discussion I would like to put forward, that we have
> found in Austria highly elevated tritium concentrations - more than 3000
> Bq/l in the water collected routineously from the bottom of household
> garbage landfillls. This water is routineously pumped to the surface and
> sprayed into the landfill for evaporation.
>
> We attribute these concentrations - without any really conclusive link, 
> just
> speculation - to the fact, that the use of watches from a certain Swiss
> brand, which used tritium for the hands. It was more or less regarded as a
> fashion object, which should be changed every few months and we attributed
> this elevations of Tritium in landfill water to this fact, though we have 
> no
> conclusive research concerning the discharge of tritium from these 
> watches.
>
> I would appreciate very much to get into contact with somebody who has
> similar experience.
>
> Best regards,
>
> Franz
>
> Franz Schoenhofer, PhD
> MinRat i.R.
> Habicherg. 31/7
> A-1160 Wien/Vienna
> AUSTRIA
>
>
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