Guidelines

What is a safe amount of cesium-137?

What is a safe amount of cesium-137?

EPA, has established a Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) of 4 millirem per year for beta particle and photon radioactivity from man-made radionuclides in drinking water. Cesium-137 would be covered under this MCL.

What is a cesium test?

Cesium-137, on the other hand, allows noninvasive testing because it is radioactive. It produces distinctive gamma rays in proportion to the amount of isotope present. Dating the wine is a simple process of matching the amount of cesium-137 to atmospheric records from the time the wine was made.

What can Cesium 137 be used for in?

Cesium-137 is also used in a wide variety of industrial instruments such as level and thickness gauges and moisture density gauges. Cesium-137 is also commonly used in hospitals for diagnosis and treatment, as a calibration source, and large sources can be used to sterilize medical equipment.

How did Cesium 137 get into the atmosphere?

Large amounts of cesium-137 were produced during atmospheric nuclear weapons tests conducted in the 1950s and 1960s. As a result of atmospheric testing and radioactive fallout, this cesium was dispersed and deposited world wide.

How many picocuries of Cesium 137 per liter?

The average concentration of cesium-137 which is assumed to yield 4 millirem per year is 200 picocuries per liter (pCi/l). If other radionuclides which emit beta particles and photon radioactivity are present in addition to cesuim-137, the sum of the annual dose from all the radionuclides shall not exceed 4 millirem/year.

What’s the maximum concentration of Cesium 137 in water?

EPA, has established a Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) of 4 millirem per year for beta particle and photon radioactivity from man-made radionuclides in drinking water. Cesium-137 would be covered under this MCL. The average concentration of cesium-137 which is assumed to yield 4 millirem per year is 200 picocuries per liter (pCi/l).