4.2.20

Radioactive Contamination and Irradiation

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Radioactive Contamination and Irradiation

Contamination is when radioactive substances occur from inside something. Irradiation is when something is exposed to radiation on its outside.

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Contamination

  • Radioactive contamination is when radioactive atoms or molecules get onto other materials.
  • Contamination is harmful because contaminating atoms decay.
  • How harmful the contamination is, depends on the type of radiation the atoms emit.
  • Contaminated atoms are likely to continue to decay. This could harm you if this happens on your skin.
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Irradiation

  • Objects near to radioactive sources are irradiated by them.
  • So irradiation is simply exposure to nuclear radiation.
  • When a radioactive source irradiates an object, the object does not become radioactive.
  • We can reduce irradiation by standing behind lead or storing radioactive material in lead-lined boxes.

Types of Contamination

Contamination is when radioactive substances occur from inside something. Different kinds of radiation have different effects.

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Alpha

  • Alpha is the most dangerous form of radiation inside the body.
  • It cannot penetrate (pass through) the skin so, it stays in the body.
    • This can cause cell mutations.
    • Alpha radiation is also the most ionising of the 3 types of radiation.
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Beta

  • Beta is not very harmful as it can pass out of the body.
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Gamma

  • Gamma is the least harmful radiation.
  • It is the most penetrative (passes through things most easily), and so it will easily pass out of the body.

Jump to other topics

1Energy

2Electricity

3Particle Model of Matter

4Atoms & Radiation

5Forces

5.1Basics of Motion

5.2Forces

5.3Effects of Forces

5.4Pressure

6Waves

7Magnetism

8Astrophysics

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