![]() Used in neutron gauging and smoke detectors. Also used to trace factory waste causing ocean pollution, and to study sewage and liquid waste movements. Produced in reactors. Used to trace sand movement in river beds and on ocean floors, and to trace sand to study coastal erosion. Also used to trace sand to study coastal erosion. Produced in reactors. Used as a radiotracer to identify sources of soil erosion and depositing, and also used for thickness gauging. Produced in reactors. Used to study sewage and liquid waste movements. Produced in 'generators' from the decay of molybdenum-99, which is in turn produced in reactors. Used to predict the behaviour of heavy metal components in effluents from mining waste water. Also used to irradiate fruit fly larvae in order to contain and eradicate outbreaks, as an alternative to the use of toxic pesticides. Produced in reactors. Used in gamma radiography, gauging, and commercial medical equipment sterilisation. Used to predict the behaviour of heavy metal components in effluents from mining waste water. Produced in reactors. Used to trace sand to study coastal erosion. Used as a tracer in tritiated water to study sewage and liquid wastes. Naturally-occurring radioisotopes in industry and science Medical radioisotopes are described in the next section. Some radioisotopes commonly-used in industry and science can be found in the tables below. Radioisotopes are used in a variety of applications in medical, industrial, and scientific fields. What are some commonly-used radioisotopes? Industrial sources usually contain radioisotopes that emit gamma rays or X-rays. What is a radioactive source?Ī sealed radioactive source is an encapsulated quantity of a radioisotope used to provide a beam of ionising radiation. They are also used on behalf of international nuclear safeguards agencies to detect clandestine nuclear activities from the distinctive radioisotopes produced by weapons programs. Radioisotopes are also widely used in scientific research and are employed in a range of applications, from tracing the flow of contaminants in biological systems to determining metabolic processes in small Australian animals. Radioisotopes are also used by industry for gauging (to measure levels of liquid inside containers, for example) or to measure the thickness of materials. A common example is to test aeroplane jet engine turbines for structural integrity. ![]() Radioisotopes are commonly used in industrial radiography, which uses a gamma source to conduct stress testing or check the integrity of welds. Industry uses radioisotopes in a variety of ways to improve productivity and gain information that cannot be obtained in any other way. Some radioisotopes used in nuclear medicine have short half-lives, which means they decay quickly and are suitable for diagnostic purposes others with longer half-lives take more time to decay, which makes them suitable for therapeutic purposes. See how nuclear medicine makes its way from ANSTO's OPAL reactor to medical centres around Australia. One half-life is the time it takes for half of the unstable atoms to undergo radioactive decay. The radioactive decay process for each radioisotope is unique and is measured with a time period called a half-life. The process of shedding the radiation is called radioactive decay. Radioactive decayĪtoms with an unstable nucleus regain stability by shedding excess particles and energy in the form of radiation. All but 0.7 per cent of naturally-occurring uranium is uranium-238 the rest is the less stable, or more radioactive, uranium-235, which has three fewer neutrons in its nucleus. The best known example of a naturally-occurring radioisotope is uranium. ![]() Nuclear reactors are best-suited to producing neutron-rich radioisotopes, such as molybdenum-99, while cyclotrons are best-suited to producing proton-rich radioisotopes, such as fluorine-18. In some cases a nuclear reactor is used to produce radioisotopes, in others, a cyclotron. The unstable nucleus of a radioisotope can occur naturally, or as a result of artificially altering the atom. They can also be defined as atoms that contain an unstable combination of neutrons and protons, or excess energy in their nucleus. Radioisotopes are radioactive isotopes of an element.
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