teaching material -Reply

["Dwaine Brown (Aiken Office)" <BBRI623@barms036.b-r.com>]

Build a simple cloud chamber:

Materials:
Round clear container
cardboard cover for the container
black blotter material or felt
dry ice
light source
denatured alcohol
heat source (clothing iron)

possible radiation sources:
orange fiesta ware
lantern mantle
NORM tracks may be seen

Place the round container on top of the dry ice. (DON'T GET FROSTBITE!)
Place the blotter material or felt on the bottom of the container
Cover the container with the cardboard
Pour thealcohol onto the cardboard cover
Allow the alcohol to soak into the cover material
Place the iron on the cardboard cover

The alcohol vapor will fill the jar and the tracks from the alpha source or 
NORM will be visible.

Shining the light into the container will make the tracks more visible.

Yes Toto, you can see radiation.
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REPLY FROM: Dwaine Brown (Aiken Office)
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Date: Thu, 10 Oct 96 14:57:22 -0500
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Subject: teaching material -Reply
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X-Comment:  Radiation Safety Distribution List 
David:

Here's 2 easy things.
1.  Get 2 portable scalers, one with a pancake GM, the other ZnS. Have
the kids bring in something from home e.g. soil, sand, fertilizer, rock salt,
gravel, ground up brazil nuts(Ra), ceramic plates( U), glass (K-40),
smoke detector (Am) , wood ash, air/furnace filter used that morning
(Rn), moist paper towel used that morning to clean the TV screen that
morning (Rn) etc. Maybe you could have each student responsible for a
given item. Make them bring the material (except the paper towell and
filter) in a few days ahead of time, if they can't locate something, you
could bring it yourself.
Perform a 3-5 minute count on each and rank the results. Make your
brother  do the counts while you are doing something else.

2. Get an alpha source, place a  ZnS screen on top and view the screen
with a magnifying glass (preferably not hand held). Turn out the lights,
explain whats going to happen and after a couple of minutes have them
look at the scintillations. It has an element of drama to it. The kids will be
doing their own thing in the dark instead of listening to the explanation but
thats what being a kid is all about anyway.

Run some tests ahead of time on your own to see that it works.Maybe
you could report back on radsafe what seemed to work.

Best wishes

Paul Frame
Professional Training Programs
ORISE
framep@orau.gov