[TheForge] Cobalt X-ray machines

Mon May 8 14:33:50 EDT 2006

How can you tell if it's a cobalt unit? I know of an abandoned junk yard
where there are several old X-ray or MRI machines. With China buying every
thing now, old stuff is literally being dragged out of the woods- worse than
in WWII. Don't worry, though, China will sell it to Walmart who will sell it
to you.

Ron C

-----Original Message-----
From: theforge-bounces at mailman.qth.net
[mailto:theforge-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Bruce Freeman
Sent: Monday, May 08, 2006 2:00 PM
To: theforge at mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: Re: [TheForge] Hellooooooo!

But that wasn't medical WASTE.  

That same sort of thing happened in Brazil, when some moron scrapped
out a cobalt X-ray unit.  Scrap dealer broke it open and children
painted themselves with the cobalt because it glowed so pretty!!!  (No
joke.  Happened in the 80's I think.)  Needless to say, several people
died.

But that still wasn't medical WASTE.  That was a scrapped unit that
should have been recycled through some radiation authority, but wasn't.

Bruce
NJ

>>> crimsonkil at lycos.com 5/8/2006 12:39:33 PM >>>
Funny,
     When I was going through Nuclear Power training, and we were going
over nuclear accidents in America; The Thresher incident, The Army's
failed Nuclear program, etc., we were told that the worst nuclear
accident in North America was from medical not reactor nuclear
substances.  It involved a texas hospital, a mexican hospital, an X-ray
machine with a cobalt-60 source and a storage unit, thieves, a scrap
metal recycler, rebar, desks and some sensitive equipment and white
sands.

-Chris K.

> ----- Original Message -----
> From: wmullett at bright.net 
> To: "Sponsored by ABANA" <theforge at mailman.qth.net>
> Subject: Re: Re: [TheForge] Hellooooooo!
> Date: Mon, 8 May 2006 12:30:40 -0400
> 
> 
> Medical waste is NOT the problem.
> 
> "Reactor waste remains hazardous for a very long time. Most medical 
> waste from treatment and diagnosis is hazardous for a very short 
> time. Research and industrial waste can contain small amounts of 
> some long-lived radioactive materials.
> 
> Among the radioactive elements commonly found in nuclear reactor 
> "low-level" waste are: Tritium, with a half-life of 12 years and a 
> hazardous life of 120-240 years; Iodine-131, half-life of 8 days, 
> hazardous life of 80-160 days; Strontium-90, half life of 28 years, 
> hazardous life of 280-560 years; Nickel-59, half life of 76,000 
> years, hazardous life of 760,000-1,520,000 years, and Iodine-129, 
> half-life of sixteen million years, hazardous life of160-320 
> million years.
> 
> By contrast, common medical waste elements include Technetium-99m, 
> with a half-life of 6 hours and a hazardous life of 2.5-5 days; 
> Galium-67, half-life of 78 hours and hazardous life of 1-2 months; 
> and Iodine-131, with its half-life of 8 days and hazardous life of 
> 80-160 days.
> 
> The vast majority of medical waste is hazardous for less than 8 
> months. Yet, it is in the same category as reactor waste that will 
> be hazardous for hundreds of thousands to millions of years.
> 
> Clearly, the definition of "low-level radioactive waste" must be 
> changed. It would make sense to redefine the more concentrated 
> and/or longer-lived waste as high-level. Active recontainerization 
> and operational control must be provided for the entire hazardous 
> life of the waste, yet the NRC requires only 100 years of passive 
> institutional control. Thus, waste hazardous longer than 100 years 
> could be forgotten. Retrievability is essential. "
> 
> 
> From: "Chris Kilpatrick" <crimsonkil at lycos.com>
> Date: Mon May 8, 10:52 AM
> To: "Sponsored by ABANA" <theforge at mailman.qth.net>
> Subject: Re: [TheForge] Hellooooooo!
> 
> > 	It would be challenged, and rightly so.  Nuclear is not a good 
> > long term solution, methinks.  The wastes are just too nasty.
> 
> 
> If you want to get rid of 94% of all nuclear waste in this country, 
> stop the medical community from using nuclear medicine.
> 
> It is I who formed the blacksmith,
> who fans the flame into a fire and
> fashions a weapon fit for it's work.
> 
> 
> --
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It is I who formed the blacksmith, 
who fans the flame into a fire and
fashions a weapon fit for it's work.

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