How toxic is strontium 90 (lab use)?

  • Context: Undergrad 
  • Thread starter Thread starter moogull
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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers around the toxicity and safety concerns related to strontium-90 and cobalt-60 in a laboratory context. Participants express curiosity about the potential health risks associated with exposure to these radioactive materials, particularly in educational settings.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Technical explanation

Main Points Raised

  • One participant expresses concern about the toxicity of strontium-90 and cobalt-60, particularly regarding exposure during a lab class.
  • Another participant suggests that breaking open the chip and ingesting the material would be harmful, drawing a parallel to the risks associated with batteries.
  • A different viewpoint emphasizes the uncertainty of radiation levels and encourages a carefree attitude towards life, suggesting that worrying may be more harmful than the actual risk.
  • One participant questions the actual radiation levels in the samples and notes that educational sources typically contain minute quantities deemed harmless.
  • Another participant mentions regulatory aspects, stating that classroom sources are usually exempt and that handling non-exempt sources without proper training violates safety regulations.
  • One participant acknowledges the low danger associated with the materials but expresses frustration with a previous response.
  • A later reply provides a link to additional information about strontium-90, reiterating that worrying may be more detrimental than the actual danger posed by such materials.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach a consensus on the level of risk associated with strontium-90 and cobalt-60. While some suggest that the risks are minimal, others express concern and uncertainty about the safety of handling these materials.

Contextual Notes

There are unresolved assumptions regarding the specific activity levels of the sources mentioned and the adequacy of safety training for handling radioactive materials in educational contexts.

moogull
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Out of curiosity and maybe needless concern, how toxic is strontium-90? I was working with some plastic poker-chip like samples containing sr-90 for a lab class, and I just really don't like the prospect of exposing myself to radiation otherwise avoidable?

Edit: Oh and the same about cobalt-60?
 
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If you were to break open the chip and ingest the material it would not be good.

Of course, the same thing can be said for batteries.
 
Are your affairs in order? Not because of that sample, but because any of us can get hit by a meteor at any time. As for the sample, don't worry about it. It's too late. I mean, we don't know what the actual radiation level was, and you wouldn't want to bet your life on those so- called facts anyway, would you. So just enjoy every moment that you can. Call everyone on your contact list and tell them you love them. That red sports car (or oscilloscope) that you always wanted, buy it today. Not that you're sick, but consumer spending is supposed to be good for the economy. So relax and enjoy yourself. Just don't buy any green bananas.
 
moogull said:
Out of curiosity and maybe needless concern, how toxic is strontium-90? I was working with some plastic poker-chip like samples containing sr-90 for a lab class, and I just really don't like the prospect of exposing myself to radiation otherwise avoidable?

Edit: Oh and the same about cobalt-60?

How many curies are the sources? Typically those types of plastic lab sources used for educational purposes contain such minute quantities as to be completely harmless.
 
Sources used in classrooms are usually exempt sources, which for Sr-90 is 100 nCi and Co-60 1 uCi. Ant professor who allows students to handle non-exempt sources without appropriate radiation safey training is in violation of the RAM license (at least as far as the US is concerned).

Exempt sources are those that are of such low activity that they do not pose an unreasonable risk to the public (in other words, you could order one from the manufacturer without a RAM license).
 
BobHamilton said:
Are your affairs in order? Not because of that sample, but because any of us can get hit by a meteor at any time. As for the sample, don't worry about it. It's too late. I mean, we don't know what the actual radiation level was, and you wouldn't want to bet your life on those so- called facts anyway, would you. So just enjoy every moment that you can. Call everyone on your contact list and tell them you love them. That red sports car (or oscilloscope) that you always wanted, buy it today. Not that you're sick, but consumer spending is supposed to be good for the economy. So relax and enjoy yourself. Just don't buy any green bananas.

That's evil..
 
I know its probably so little danger, thanks for the responses, cept for you BobHamilton.
 
OK. I am Sorry! I was tired. I'll try again. Here is a link with some good info.
(The program would not let me include the link until I have 10 posts, so I'll write out everything http colon slash slash epa dot gov slash rpdweb00 slash radionuclides slash strontium dot html)
Most of my previous answer was correct, wasn't it? Worrying about some things is many times worse than the actual danger they present. But of course you were correct to at least double check to learn what you were dealing with. So you can go ahead and buy green bananas for a very long time. Inshallah.
 
Oh alright! I like your input too Bob, Thank you for the link :)
 

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