Re: Potassium Iodide -Reply -Reply

[Emil <kerremba@pilot.msu.edu>]

> 
  Please let me know how we can improve the report; it was
> seriously offered as a "draft for comment."
> 
> Charlie Willis
> caw@nrc.gov

I would consider the difference in radio iodine concentration in respect
to reactor conditions. If leak from the reactor would happen in a moment
when
it was shotdown for period more then (roughly) an hour and less than a
day it would 
be probably UNNECESSARY to administer KI because there will not
significant radio iodine release INSTEAD there will BE xenon release. In
Reactor Physics this reactor condition is known as "iodine depletion" or
xenon poisoning of the reactor. I do not think that I need to go in more
detailes about this phenomen. I do not have a book in front of me. But
basically it happens because iodine decays to xenon. Xenon has a very
high neutron cross section. And in working reactor there are
Iodine-Xenon equlibrium  

I will need to look in my books to find out the real iodine isotope
ratio. 
I would compare risk from KI vs radioiodine in different reactor
conditions.
Probably olderely would not need KI because of increase of cardiac
problems and deacrease of risk to thyroide from radio iodine but again I
am not familiar with KI side effects.
    
I think it could be implemented in the emergency response procedures as
a cituation when KI does not need to be administer. But as I said, I
would look in the books. Of course this parameters will be slitly
different with Pu-239 as a fuel and time of the cycle.
I would be interested to hear some opinions from the reactors.
Best regards.
Emil.

P.S.
It is so nice to represent your own opinion and not your employer's when
you do not have one.