DU Facts

["Miller, Mark L" <mmiller@sandia.gov>]

Grant,
Natural U is 99.27% by mass U-238.  Depleted U is 99.75% by mass U-238.  As
you can see, there's NOT much of a difference here!  The limiting condition
for U in the body is the nephrotoxic effect that U (as a heavy metal) has on
the kidneys.  The specific activity of natural U and DU is so low, that its
radiological effects are neglibible by comparison. 

Mark L. Miller
Certified Health Physicist

<clip> Can someone on RadSafe enlighten me as to what, if any, difference
there is
between DU and natural Uranium with respect to its internal interaction with
the human body.  The claims by Dr. Hoover appear to me to be ungrounded and
completely out in left field, but then again I'm not an epidemiologist(my
apologies to RESPONSIBLE epidemiologists who may be part of this list).

Grant Wilton
Senior Research Scientist
Southwest Research Institute
gwilton@chem.swri.edu


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