Benefits

1
Benefits Dangers of
Radioisotopes
2
Dating (not that kind)

• C-14 used to date organic (previously living)
  materials
• Living organisms incorporate C-14 into their
  structure, along with C-12
• C-14 decays with known half-life
• 14C ? 14N 0?
• comparing amounts of C-14 C-12 can figure how
  many half-lives have gone by since it died
• Helps determine age of substance

3
ROCKS

• U-238 decays to Pb-206 (many steps)
• Over time, amount of U ? and amount of Pb ?
• Scientists use the ratio of U-238 to Pb-206 to
  date rocks

4
Chemical Tracers

• Able to detect radioactive materials and their
  decay products
• Tracer any radioisotope used to follow path of
  material in system
• P-31 determines P uptake in plants
• C-14 maps C in metabolic processes
• C-14 maps organic molecules and figures out
  reaction mechanisms

5
Industrial Applications

• Kill bacteria and spores in food and mail

6
Medical

• radioisotopes with short half-lives (quickly
  eliminated from the body)
• Tracers in medical diagnosis
• Treatment of cancer
• I-131 Diagnosis treat thyroid disorders
• Co-60 gamma emitter
• Used to kill cancerous tumors

7
Medical

• Co-60 and Cs-137 destroys anthrax bacilli
• Co-60 kills bacteria in foods
• Tc-99 treatment of brain cancer

8
Power Plants

• Used as a fuel source to generate electricity
• No contributions to greenhouse gases
• No mercury contamination of atmosphere

9
Radiation Risks

• Can damage normal tissue
• High doses can cause illness death
• Can cause mutations in DNA
• Disposal of waste is difficult (esp. from nuclear
  power plants)
• Fuel rods are mix of many substances
• Storage transportation both problematic