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Answer to Question #1635 Submitted to "Ask the Experts"Category: Policy, Guidelines, and Regulations — ALARA The following question was answered by an expert in the appropriate field: Q
My facility uses small capsule-sealed sources of 57Co (3-10 mCi), and 99mTc sources from 400 µCi to 25 mCi. We also have an americium sealed source of 5 mCi. All are handled with the usual ALARA principles and according to standard radiation protection procedures. I have now been told that americium is "special" and requires extra precautions to prevent corneal damage. This doesn't make sense to me; is it true? Is americium really so different from other gamma emitters?
A
You are correct in that handling americium is no different from handling any other potential internal contaminant, and would be subject to similar precautions, except for the fact that the quantities involved for a given level of hazard are much smaller for americium than for most other radionuclides. Although 241Am contains alphas, electrons (betas), and gammas, for the most part it is used for its very low-energy gammas, at around 60 keV for calibration and industrial uses.
As with any type of sealed radiation source, the common health physics practices of time, distance, and shielding, coupled with your ALARA principles, should be all that you need. Ronald Kathren, CHP
Answer posted on 1 March 2002. The information and material posted on this website is intended as general reference information only. Specific facts and circumstances may alter the concepts and applications of materials and information described herein. The information provided is not a substitute for professional advice and should not be relied upon in the absence of such professional advice specific to whatever facts and circumstances are presented in any given situation. Answers are correct at the time they are posted on the Website. Be advised that over time, some requirements could change, new data could be made available, or Internet links could change. For answers that have been posted for several months or longer, please check the current status of the posted information prior to using the responses for specific applications.
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