Re: Contaminated Clothing

[Robert_A_Jones@RL.gov]

     Is it cheaper to wash the clothing, or throw it away?  If the material 
     is soluble carbon - it may be a good option to wash the clothing.  If 
     the solubility is highly pH dependent (i.e.. it needs an acidic 
     solution to remain suspended), then washing will not do much.  If it 
     needs a surfactant, it may be a good idea to wash (with soap - of 
     course).  If the carbon is in a reactive form, it may be very well 
     bound to the clothing - and discarding would be better.  Remember that 
     decontamination is a physical process, so the physical properties must 
     be well known before a decision is made.  It might not be a bad idea 
     to ask a few chemists about reaction with the type of material the 
     clothing is made from.  But, it may be cheaper to just get rid of the 
     article of clothing than to research all of this.  You need to 
     determine if washing will do any good first (by knowing the chemical 
     form of the carbon), then you should take action.  You should also 
     know if this is OK to release (I would imagine .1uCi per the amount of 
     water in the wash is acceptable).  
     
     What do you think Radsafers?
     
     Robert A. Jones
     
     "The walls have ears and mouths....."  These opinions are my own, not 
     necessarily my employers.


______________________________ Reply Separator _________________________________
Subject: Contaminated Clothing
Author:  kulpanowski@glerl.noaa.gov (Kimberly A. Kulpanowski) at -MailLink
Date:    11/26/96 3:21 PM


If I may employee your assistance once again, I would like to know how you 
handle contaminated clothing.  If 100 ml of C-14 in water, total activity 
0.1 uCi is spilled directly on street clothes (i.e. lab coat NOT being worn) 
would you discard the clothing or launder them and return them to the 
employee.  I'm familiar with the option of cutting out the contaminated area 
of the clothing, but hardly seems realistic when dealing with street 
clothes.  My initial response would be to discard the clothing because I 
don't know how you can assure that after decon, you have removed all C-14. 
Since this clothing is street clothing worn directly against the skin, I 
feel justified in this logic. I'm wondering if others would agree or if you 
would wash the clothes and return them to the employee.  If you would like 
to respond, my e-mail address is kulpanowski@glerl.noaa.gov     Thank you 
for your assistance.
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From: kulpanowski@glerl.noaa.gov (Kimberly A. Kulpanowski)
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Subject: Contaminated Clothing
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