What are the uses of americium-241? Americium when blended with beryllium is used as a neutron source in the testing of machinery and in thickness gauges in the glass industry . Americium also is used as a radiation source in medical diagnostic devices and in research.
Why is americium-241 used in smoke detectors?
Ionization smoke detectors use americium as a source of alpha particles . Alpha particles from the americium source ionize air molecules. This makes some particles positively charged and some negatively charged. ... Because of this shielding, the smoke detector poses no radiation health risk when they are properly handled.
What are the advantages of americium-241?
In addition to a sufficient half-life to make a smoke detector with a suitable service life, Am-241 emits mostly alpha radiation (which is used for the ionizing mechanism) with relatively little of the more hazardous and useless gamma radiation.
What are the benefits of using radiation in smoke detectors?
Ionization chamber smoke detectors, the most common type, use radiation to detect smoke . The NRC allows this “beneficial use” of radioactive material because a smoke detector’s ability to save lives far outweighs any health risk from the radiation. These products use very small amounts of radioactive materials.
Is americium helpful or harmful?
Exposure to extremely high levels of americium, as has been reported in some animal studies, has resulted in damage to organs such as the lungs, liver, kidneys, and thyroid. It is rare, however, that a person would be exposed to amounts of americium large enough to cause harmful effects in these organs.
Is it legal to own americium?
Americium is the only man-made element which is legal to posses , and the amazing part is that you can buy it for less than $10 at any hardware store.
Can you touch americium?
Americium, a silvery-white, synthetic element, is created during nuclear reactions of heavy elements. ... Americium is a highly radioactive element that can be dangerous when handled incorrectly and can cause severe illnesses.
Do smoke detectors still use americium?
Fires kill people but smoke detectors don’t even irradiate them. ... Ionization chamber smoke detectors contain a small amount of americium-241, a radioactive material. Smoke particles disrupt the low, steady electrical current produced by radioactive particles and trigger the detector’s alarm.
Why is using an alpha emitter in a smoke alarm safe to use in a house?
An alpha source is used because alpha radiation does not penetrate very far . It is absorbed by a few cm of air. This means that as long as the detector is high up on a wall, or the ceiling, it is safe for humans to be in the same room.
What radiation does americium-241 give off?
Am-241 is primarily an alpha emitter, but also emits some gamma rays . It poses a more significant risk if ingested (swallowed) or inhaled.
Are smoke alarms safe radiation?
Ionisation smoke alarms contain a tiny amount of a radioactive isotope . ... Therefore, if smoke enters the detecting chamber, some of these ionised air molecules will react with the smoke, causing a change in electrical behaviour – hence triggering the alarm to go off.
What type of radiation Cannot pass through the skin?
Alpha particles cannot penetrate intact skin. Gamma and x-rays can pass through a person damaging cells in their path.
How do smoke detectors detect smoke?
Smoke alarms detect fires by sensing small particles in the air using a couple of different kinds of technologies . Once they detect those particles above a certain threshold, they signal the alarm to sound so that you and your family can get to safety and call 911. Smoke alarms save lives.
Why is it called americium?
Americium is named for America where it was first made .
Is indium named after India?
History. In 1863, the German chemists Ferdinand Reich and Hieronymous Theodor Richter were testing ores from the mines around Freiberg, Saxony. ... They named the element indium, from the indigo color seen in its spectrum, after the Latin indicum, meaning ‘of India’ .
How is americium used in everyday life?
Americium can be produced in kilogram quantities and has a few practical uses. It is used in smoke detectors and can be used as a portable source of gamma rays. Americium-241, with a half-life of 432.2 years, is used in these products because it is easier to produce relatively pure samples of this isotope.
