Re: US NRC PR on Tritium in Timepieces

[Mike McNaughton <mcnaught@lanl.gov>]

>In fact, the dose to the
>public from timepieces using GTLS is expected to be less
>than that from timepieces using the same quantity of tritium
>as paint, because the tritium leak rate from sealed glass
>tubes is significantly lower than from paint.

What happens if a glass tube breaks? If all the tritium in a GTLS were
somehow absorbed into the body, the CEDE would be several hundred rem. A
GTLS contains tritium gas, not oxide, and it disperses, so the amount
absorbed is much smaller; but do we know how much smaller?

"Shlala gashle" (Zulu greeting, meaning "Stay safe")
mike (mcnaught@LANL.GOV)