Thursday, October 2, 2014

Prior to the first nuclear explosion at Alamogordo, New Mexico on July 16, 1945, the dietary intake of radiocesium was ZERO

Naturally Occurring Radionuclides:
Isotope Name Half-life Principle Decay Mode Maximum Energy Product of:
Radium-226 1599.0 y alpha 4.78450 Mev Natural Source 238U decay scheme
Radon-222 3.82351 d alpha 5.48966 Mev Same
Polonium-210 138.3763 d alpha 5.30451 Mev daughter 210Bi in radium decay scheme
Artificially Produced Radionuclides which also exist Naturally*:
Tritium 12.346 y beta 0.018610 Mev 6Li
Carbon-14 5730 y beta 0.155 Mev 14N
Krypton-85 10.701 y beta 0.672 Mev 84Kr
Artificial Radionuclides Produced by the Fission Process:
Strontium-89 50.55 d beta 1.488 Mev 88Sr 
Strontium-90 28.82 y beta 0.546 Mev fission
Iodine-129 157 x 107 y beta 0.150 Mev fission
Iodine-131 8.040 d beta 0.6065 Mev fission
Cesium-134 2.062 y beta 1.454 Mev 133Cs
Cesium-137 30.174 y beta 0.51163 Mev fission
Transuranic Nuclides Produced by the Fission Process:
Neptunium-237 2.14 x 106 y alpha 4.2 Mev 241Am
Plutonium-238 87.71 y alpha 5.49921 Mev 238Np
Plutonium-239 2.4131 X 104 y alpha 5.1554 Mev 235mU
Plutonium-241 14.355 y alpha 5.17 Mev Multiple n-capture from 238U, 239Pu
Americium-241 432.0 y alpha 5.48574 Mev 241Pu
Curium-242 162.76 d alpha 6.1129 Mev same as 241Pu
Curium-244 18.099 y alpha 5.80496 Mev same as 241Pu





Other Important Fission Products Include:
Molybdemum-99 67 hr beta 1.23 Mev
Technetium-99 2.12 x 105 y beta 0.292 Mev
Ruthenium-103 39.8 d beta 0.70 Mev
Ruthenium-106 1 y beta 0.039 Mev
Silver-110m 252 d gamma 0.74 Mev
Tellurium-132  78 hr. beta 0.22 Mev
Barium-140 12.8 d beta 1.02 Mev
Cerium-144 290 d beta 0.31 Mev
Europium-154 8.2 y beta 0.70 Mev





Important Activation Products Include:
Nickel-63  100 y beta 0.067 Mev
Nickel-59 76,000 y electron capture 1.06 Mev
Cobalt-58 0.194 y e.c. and gamma 0.474 Mev
Cobalt-60 5.2719 y beta 0.31788 Mev
Iron-55 2.68 y e.c.

Manganese-54 0.855 y gamma 0.835 Mev
Niobium-95 35 d beta 0.160 Mev
Zirconium-95 0.175 y gamma 0.396 Mev