ALLAMA IQBAL OPEN UNIVERSITY

Lecturate
Unit 5:
Radioactive Pollution

Presented By
Husnain Afzal
Executive Engineer (Civil), WAPDA
Presentation Sequence

 Sources of Exposure to Radiation

 Biological Effects of Radiation
 Famous Incidents of Radioactive Pollution
Radioactive Pollution
 Radioactive pollution is the presence of radioactive
substances in the environment. These substances are
known as pollutants because they can cause damage to the
environment. Animals, plants and humans can all fall ill
due to radioactive pollution.
Types of Radiation
There are four types of Radiations which are illustrated
below.
 Alpha Radiation
Alpha radiation is a heavy, very short-range particle and is
actually an ejected helium nucleus.
Most alpha radiation is not able to penetrate human
skin. Alpha-emitting materials can be harmful to humans
if the materials are inhaled, swallowed, or absorbed
through open wounds.
Alpha radiation is the least penetrating. It can be stopped
(or absorbed) by a sheet of paper.
Types of Radiation

 Beta Radiation
Beta radiation is a light, short-range particle and is actually
an ejected electron. It may travel several feet in air and is
moderately penetrating.
Beta radiation can penetrate human skin to the "germinal
layer," where new skin cells are produced. If high levels of
beta-emitting contaminants are allowed to remain on the
skin for a prolonged period of time, they may cause skin
injury.
Beta radiation can penetrate air and paper. It can be
stopped by a thin sheet of aluminium.
Types of Radiation
 Gamma radiation
Gamma radiation and x rays are highly penetrating
electromagnetic radiation and are able to travel many feet
in air and many inches in human tissue.
Higher levels can only be stopped by many centimeters of
lead, or many meters of concrete.
Types of Radiation
 Neutron Radiation
Neutron radiation consists of a free neutron, usually
emitted as a result of spontaneous or induced nuclear
fission. Able to travel hundreds or even thousands of
meters in air, they are however able to be effectively
stopped if blocked by a hydrogen-rich material, such as
concrete or water.
Sources of Exposure to Radiation

Natural radiation
 The earth's outer atmosphere is continually bombarded by
cosmic radiation. Usually, cosmic radiation consists of fast
moving particles that exist in space and originate from a
variety of sources, including the sun and other celestial
events in the universe. The doses due to natural sources of
radiation vary depending on location. The crews of Jet- air
crafts receive even higher exposure.
 Natural deposits of uranium, potassium and thorium in the
process of natural decay, release small amounts of ionizing
radiation.
 Radon is an odourless and colourless radioactive gas that is
produced by the decay of uranium.
Sources of Exposure to Radiation
Medical sources:
 Radiation has many uses in medicine. The most well
known use is X-ray machines, which use radiation to find
broken bones and diagnose disease.
Nuclear:
 Nuclear power plants (NPPs) use uranium to drive a chain
reaction that produces steam, which in turn drives turbines
to produce electricity. As part of their normal activities,
NPPs release regulated levels of radioactive material which
can expose people to low doses of radiation.
 Explosion of Nuclear weapon can contaminate air, water
and food within 80 to 160 km of blast.
Sources of Exposure to Radiation
 Some nuclear radiations are pulled aloft in upper
atmosphere by wind and carried around the earth for years,
even decades, constantly subjecting people to slow steady
drizzle of radioactivity.
Biological Effects of Radiation
 Uranium mine workers, radiologists, radium dial painters
are among those whose suffer seriously from radiation
hazards. Most serious disorders are caused by radiation
escaped from nuclear power plants and nuclear explosions.
These include miscarriages, mental retardations, brain cell
damages, nausea, cancer etc.
 Radiation is measured in rems (roentgen equivalent man) it
was named after German physicist, Wilhelm Rontgen who
discovered of X-rays.
Biological Effects of Radiation
Exposure to radon increases
one’s risk of getting cancer
(especially lung cancer), and
high radon levels can be as
bad for health as smoking a
carton of cigarettes a day.
Biological Effects of Radiation
Time to Onset (without
Exposure (rem) Health Effect treatment)
changes in blood
5–10 —
chemistry
50 nausea hours
55 fatigue —
70 vomiting —
75 hair loss 2–3 weeks
90 diarrhea —
100 hemorrhage —
400 possible death within 2 months
destruction of intestinal
1000 —
lining
internal bleeding —
death 1–2 weeks
damage to central
2000 —
nervous system
loss of consciousness; minutes
death hours to days
Famous Incidents of Radioactive Pollution

 Hiroshima Nagasaki
On August 6, 1945, during World War II (1939-45), an
American B-29 bomber dropped the world’s first deployed
atomic bomb over the Japanese city of Hiroshima. The
explosion wiped out 90 percent of the city and immediately
killed 80,000 people; tens of thousands more would later
die of radiation exposure. Three days later, a second B-29
dropped another A-bomb on Nagasaki, killing an estimated
40,000 people.
Famous Incidents of Radioactive Pollution

 Chernobyl
The Chernobyl plant is located some 100km from
Ukraine's capital, Kiev. The explosions occurred during a
test designed to check the reactor's cooling functions on
limited power.
Military helicopters were used to drop more than 2,400
tonnes of lead and 1,800 tonnes of sand in an attempt to
smother the fire and absorb the radiation.
 134 people who were either on-site at the time of the
explosion or involved in the initial clean-up operation were
confirmed as suffering from Acute Radiation Syndrome
(ARS).Of these 134 people, 28 died within a few weeks of
the incident.
Famous Incidents of Radioactive Pollution

There has been a large increase in thyroid cancer among

people who were children living in the most contaminated
areas at the time of the explosion, with some 5,000 cases
detected across Russia, Ukraine and Belarus. This is due to
consumption of milk from cows that grazed on pastures
contaminated with radioactive iodine.
 Three Mile Island nuclear reactor
In 1979, in Pennsylvania (USA), a valve in the cooling
system of the Three Mile Island nuclear reactor failed, It
was stuck open, allowing lots of coolant water to escape.
The nuclear reactor overheated and had a partial meltdown.
There was a small explosion and a radioactive material was
released outside of the plant. The cleanup effort cost nearly
a billion dollars.
THANK YOU!!