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Reimagining nuclear materials for the future of medicine
Nuclear medicine has come a long way since Henri Becquerel first observed the penetrating energy of radioactive materials in 1896. Today, technetium-99m alone is used in more than 40 million diagnostic procedures every year—from cardiovascular imaging and bone scans to cancer detection—making it the undisputed workhorse of nuclear medicine. That single statistic tells you something important: An enormous portion of modern diagnostic medicine rests on a surprisingly narrow foundation, one built around a small number of aging research reactors that were never originally designed for continuous isotope production.
Jorma Jokiniemi, Kimmo Koistinen, Taisto Raunemaa
Nuclear Technology | Volume 90 | Number 3 | June 1990 | Pages 394-407
Technical Paper | RELAP/MOD2 / Nuclear Safety | doi.org/10.13182/NT90-A34403
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Hygroscopic aerosols were studied at 40° C at different relative humidity levels in a flow-type reactor chamber. The main interest was in growth of hygroscopic aerosols under higher humidity conditions. The time development of the aerosol in the 0.01- to 17-µm size range was determined using electrical aerosol analyzer and optical particle counter aerosol analyses. Low velocity and laminar flow were used to facilitate the comparison with theoretical considerations. Cesium hydroxide (CsOH) and sodium hydroxide (NaOH) were used as hygroscopic materials. Cesium is one of the most abundant species in core melt release, and NaOH is well known for its hygroscopic properties. The primary particles were produced by a constant output atomizer. The dry particle size, as volume median diameter (VMD), for CsOH was 1.8 µm. The observed airborne particle size after 2 min of travel was 6.3 µm, after 5 min 5.3 µm, and after 10 min 3.4 µm at saturated conditions. For dry NaOH aerosol, the measured initial VMD was 2.7 µm. At saturated conditions, the observed VMD was 6.7 µm after a 10-min travel. Theoretical calculations with the modified NAUA code showed that during travel through the chamber, the particle size change can be attributed to hygroscopic growth and sedimentation.