Residents voice concerns about LANL releasing tritium vapors

Marlin · Oct 23, 2020, 11:41

Residents voice concerns about LANL releasing tritium vapors

https://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/residents-voice-concerns-about-lanl-releasing-tritium-vapors/article_5bdf1f04-100e-11eb-b4ad-3b38fd479a8a.html

Mounder · Oct 26, 2020, 03:19

This is a crazy over-reaction to 4 drums with tritium mixed waste. Do they have a clue how extremely large the release limits are for tritium? It's H3 with a weak beta.

peteshonkwiler · Oct 26, 2020, 04:42

Quote from: Mounder on Oct 26, 2020, 03:19
This is a crazy over-reaction to 4 drums with tritium mixed waste. Do they have a clue how extremely large the release limits are for tritium? It's H3 with a weak beta.

That beta is so weak that it's not detected by most, virtually all, field instrumentation. H3 energy is more close to that of an alpha.

Marlin · Oct 26, 2020, 05:33

Quote from: peteshonkwiler on Oct 26, 2020, 04:42
H3 energy is more close to that of an alpha.

I don't think so.

peteshonkwiler · Oct 26, 2020, 06:30

Quote from: Marlin on Oct 26, 2020, 05:33
I don't think so.

Maybe not, I could have a memory error. But I usually think of alpha particles having an energy of about 5 MeV, and the emitted beta from H3 about 5 keV.

Marlin · Oct 26, 2020, 07:22

Quote from: peteshonkwiler on Oct 26, 2020, 06:30
Maybe not, I could have a memory error. But I usually think of alpha particles having an energy of about 5 MeV, and the emitted beta from H3 about 5 keV.

I can sympathize, I have an increasing number of senior moments myself. I double check facts and proof read a lot more than I use to. But then a retiree does not have to be in a hurry.

Marlin · Oct 26, 2020, 07:38

Quote from: Mounder on Oct 26, 2020, 03:19
This is a crazy over-reaction to 4 drums with tritium mixed waste. Do they have a clue how extremely large the release limits are for tritium? It's H3 with a weak beta.

Another example of poor public education by the nuclear sector. May shock some of them to know that the exit signs in their building may be powered by Tritium up to 25 curies and it is still not (or barely) detectable with a standard frisker. Not historical you can still buy them giving you and emergency sign that does not need external power or a battery. Packaged a number of drums of those signs at one DOE site, decay correcting each sign so I could package more signs in each drum.

Pete I did remember the curie content but did a double check anyway.

peteshonkwiler · Oct 26, 2020, 07:49

Marlin, 😄😄.
Re: using Fisker's for H3... not good. H3 probes are your basic 43-68 w/o the mylar.

Marlin · Oct 26, 2020, 08:05

Quote from: peteshonkwiler on Oct 26, 2020, 07:49
Marlin, 😄😄.
Re: using Fisker's for H3... not good. H3 probes are your basic 43-68 w/o the mylar.

Actually used the listed curie content and manufacture date. Just mentioned the frisker for relative risk communication. Did have to get the RCT to dose rate the full drum to be in compliance though.

peteshonkwiler · Oct 26, 2020, 08:16

Quote from: Marlin on Oct 26, 2020, 08:05
Actually used the listed curie content and manufacture date. Just mentioned the frisker for relative risk communication. Did have to get the RCT to dose rate the full drum to be in compliance though.

Did a D&D on a H3/C14 lab. H3 probes are a pain, a total pain! Boxes of materials at BKG w/ M19.😴

Marlin · Oct 26, 2020, 08:50

Quote from: peteshonkwiler on Oct 26, 2020, 08:16
Did a D&D on a H3/C14 lab. H3 probes are a pain, a total pain! Boxes of materials at BKG w/ M19.😴

The project I did with the exit signs also had gallons of tritium contaminated mercury and tritium contaminated sump sludge. Did not do the monitoring or sampling myself so I have no idea what meters/instruments they used, I was an end user of the data. It was the only demo project where I sealed the B-25's with caulking instead of the supplied gasket to prevent off gassing in transit.
You would think if some of the public were aware of the negligible hazard involved they would be asking if we were spending too much to handle an isotope formed in our upper atmosphere because of the ignorance of the rest of the public.

Trying to link back up to the public reaction in the OP.

Mounder · Oct 27, 2020, 12:15

The AF silo folks had a "qualitative" tritium monitor for decades. Was still in place a few years ago. When checking for leaks during inspections, the monitor simply note something was or wasn't there. If something was there, they backed off and contacted their Bioenvironmental Engineering group.

GLW · Oct 27, 2020, 03:19

Quote from: peteshonkwiler on Oct 26, 2020, 07:49
Marlin, 😄😄.
Re: using Fisker's for H3... not good. H3 probes are your basic 43-68 w/o the mylar.

Quote from: peteshonkwiler on Oct 26, 2020, 08:16
Did a D&D on a H3/C14 lab. H3 probes are a pain, a total pain! Boxes of materials at BKG w/ M19.😴

oh!!! I have quite a long story on that detector and using them at an animal research lab DnD and how the ludlum version which was cobbed up by he who shall remain nameless was so easily modified (by moi) to include the discarding of the stupid cap screws and the redneck engineering self stick foam seals, to be replaced by more modern smart appliques (again by moi) which had the other techs extolling ooohs and ahhhhhs and he who shall remain nameless not a happy camper,....

because - that's what I do,....