tritium

6.03

6.032098563

2330708

YGG3Y3DAG1

TSCA listed

colorless

liq: 45.35mol/L [KIR78]

-254.54° (20.62 K)

-248.11℃

Gaseous tritium at high pressure takes up less space but is more difficult to contain in part due to the potential for tritium and helium embrittlement of the vessel materials. This embrittlement increases the probability of a tritium leak or catastrophic container failure. Unloading high pressure gas requires specifically designed systems and experienced, skilled operators.|Metal tritides reduce the overall volume of the stored tritium, but some of the finely divided metals used are pyrophoric. Some metals form low melting point alloys with the materials used in the construction of the metal tritide containers. Others require extremely high temperatures in order to recover tritium from the material.|Tritium in the form of T2O may be difficult to store for long periods due to its corrosive properties. Experiments with T2O indicate that pure T2O is corrosive. This corrosiveness is likely due to tritium oxide generating free radicals (OH-) from radiolytic decomposition of water in addition to extra energy from beta decay impinging on surrounding molecules. Additionally, pure T2O, like distilled H2O, will dissolve many materials.|Large quantities of tritium (3-H /in the laboratory/ should be stored in double containers. The inner container holding the labeled material should be in a larger, tightly covered outer container that contains absorbent material, such as kitty litter or cotton balls. ... Long term storage of aqueous material may be done in freezers if no damage to the labeled material will ensue. Storage of double containers in fume hoods is also acceptable. When such materials are stored in refrigerators or freezers, it is normal for condensation and frost to become contaminated. These should be checked by smears of condensation or collection of frost with counting in a liquid scintillation counter.

There are 6 isotopes of hydrogen /tritium/. Hydrogen-1 and hydrogen-2 are naturally occurring and stable. Hydrogen-3 is naturally occurring and radioactive. Hydrogen isotopes with mass numbers 4-6 are artificially produced and are radioactive.|Hydrogen-3 /tritium/ half-life: 12.33 years|DECAY PATHWAY: Hydrogen-3, half-life 12.32 years, decays via beta(-) emission (18.590 keV) to helium-3, half-life stable|Half-life: 12.26 yr; decay constant: 1.765X10-9/sec; maximum beta energy: 18.6 keV; mean beta energy, 5.7 keV; maximum specific activity: 1078.9 GBq/mmol; molar activiity: 2157 TBq/mol|For more Other Experimental Properties (Complete) data for TRITIUM, RADIOACTIVE (12 total), please visit the HSDB record page.

1390 J/mol

Critical temp: -232.56 °C; critical pressure: 18.317 atm

7

The common method of solidification of tritium-contaminated wastewater for disposal is to solidify the water on clay so that it can be classified as solid waste. Clay will hold approximately 60 percent water by volume. Waste disposal sites generally require the use of 100 percent more clay than required to solidify the water, and, as a result, the water is generally limited to 30 percent of the volume of the clay for waste solidification purposes. Water absorbed on clay is not corrosive and may be stored for long periods without damage to the container wall.|Disposable beakers, pipettes, and tools should be placed in plastic bags that are tied or taped closed for disposal into normal radioactive waste. Ensuring a complete bagging of radioactive waste will minimize tritium vapors in the waste storage containers.|Gas (T2): Waste disposal sites generally will not accept packages containing pressurized gases or those in which a potential exists for generating 1.5 atmospheres (absolute) of pressure over time.

USDOE; Primer on Tritium Safe Handling Practices DOE-HDBK-1079-94 (December 1994). Available from: http://www.eh.doe.gov/techstds/standard/hdbk1079/hdbk1079.pdf as of July 27, 2006.|Pacific Northwest National Laboratory; HANFORD: Radiation and Health Technology Methods and Models of the Hanford Internal Dosimetry Program. PNNL-MA-860 (2003) Available at http://www.pnl.gov/eshs/pub/pnnl860/pnnl860.pdf as of October 4, 2006|Multi-Agency Radiological Laboratory Analytical Protocols Manual Volume II: Chapters 10-17 and Appendix F. (July 2004) NUREG-1576, EPA 402-B-04-001B, NTIS PB2004-105421. Available at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/nuregs/staff/sr1576/sr1576v2.pdf as of October 12, 2006

2910

In general, only supplied-air respirators are effective in preventing inhalation of airborne tritium. Two types of air-supplied respirators are available: self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) and full-face supplied air masks.|Experience at tritium laboratories has shown that many tritium exposures to personnel occur as a result of contact with highly contaminated surfaces. ...Lab coats and coveralls (fabric barriers) are worn in most tritium facilities. Lab coats are routinely worn to protect personal clothing. Coveralls are sometimes worn for added protection instead of a lab coat when the work is unusually dusty, dirty, or greasy. The protection afforded by lab coats and coveralls is minimal (except for short exposures) when tritium is airborne, but they are more effective in preventing skin contact with contaminated surfaces. Disposable water-proof and water-resistant lab coats and coveralls have been tested at various laboratories. They are not popular for everyday use because of the cost and excessive discomfort inflicted on the worker.|Shoe covers can offer both a degree of personnel protection and control over the spread of contamination on floors. However, in modern facilities where tritium is largely controlled by the use of secondary containment, shoe covers may not be required. Such facilities can easily maintain a clean laboratory environment by the use of regular smear surveys and good housekeeping. Using liquid-proof shoe covers until spills are cleaned up should be considered following spills of tritium-contaminated liquids and solids to prevent the spread of local contamination.|The proper use and selection of gloves are essential. Many factors should be considered in selecting the proper type of glove. These include chemical compatibility, permeation resistance, abrasion resistance, solvent resistance, glove thickness, glove toughness, glove color, shelf life, and unit cost. Gloves are commercially available in butyl rubber, neoprene, polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastics, latex, etc. The most common gloves found in tritium laboratories are the light-weight, disposable short glove (usually PVC or latex) used for handling lightly contaminated equipment. Depending on the level of contamination, such gloves may be changed frequently (every 10-20 minutes), a second pair may be worn, or heavier gloves may be used instead. When using gloves for this purpose, the work should be planned so that contaminated gloves doe not spread contamination to surfaces that are being kept free of contamination. When working in a glove box using the box gloves, disposable gloves are worn to prevent uptake of HTO contaminating the outside of the box gloves. Again, depending on the level of contamination, more than one additional pair may be required, one of which may be a longer, surgeon's length, glove.

Severe, when exposed to heat or flame.

Following a tritium spill involving a liquid with high specific activity, the area may have to be isolated and other protective measures taken before cleaning up the liquid. Monitoring for possible airborne tritium must be started to determine the need for respiratory protection or skin protection. After the spill has been cleaned up, residual contamination will remain. Depending on the level of contamination, any further steps needed to prevent the spread of contamination and reduce the level to an acceptable value should be determined. Following a release of tritium gas, surfaces would not be expected to be heavily contaminated. If tritiated water vapor is released, the contamination may be greater, depending on the amount and activity of the released vapor. In any case, smear and air surveys will be used to determine the course of action needed to control and reduce the contamination safely.|/For small spills/ Absorb liquids onto kitty litter, then transfer to metal cans. /From table/

Glove boxes should be used for millicurie quantities of volatile cmpd or for 25 mCi or more of tritiated water. Fume hoods or dry boxes should be used for volatile cmpd or when 100 mCi or more is used at one time in volatile form. /From table/|Work with curie levels of tritium should be done in a glove bag or dry box ... inside a fume hood or connected to it. ... Outlet air should pass through a prefilter, then a suitable tritium trap, such as a water bubbler. ... Drip trays are a must. Absorbent paper should be used to line trays and hoods.|Hoods should operate at 125-150 ft/min face velocity. Wherever possible, dry boxes should have separate exhaust blowers that exit directly into the fume hood duct. The flow rate of the hood should be adequate to ensure that thetritium concentration exiting the hood stack is below 2X10-7 uCi/ml.|Disposable labware is recommended.|For more Preventive Measures (Complete) data for TRITIUM, RADIOACTIVE (17 total), please visit the HSDB record page.

Leak testing (normally employing a sniff test method) is required for radioactive materials shipments in Type B packages. The package must be leak-tight ... as defined by American National Standards Institute (ANSI) N14.5. ...|/For work with tritium convered under DOE requirements/ Once an item has met the DOE and U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) requirements for shipment (properly packaged, radioactively surveyed, properly marked, properly filled out shipping papers, etc.) then the item inside the approved shipping package can be shipped to a new location. During shipment, the item inside the approved shipping package is expected to be subject to the normal activities associated with its movement from one location to another; for example, loading and unloading the package from vehicles, transport to a shipping area, storage in the shipping area prior to transport, loading and unloading the package onto trucks/trains/airplanes, and storage in the receiving area after arrival at the new destination. The packaging required by DOT/NRC regulations is designed to protect the workers, the public, and the environment from the radioactive material during normal package handling, transport, and shipping/receiving storage. ... Limited quantities of tritium can be packaged and shipped in strong, tight containers (paper boxes, paint cans) with proper markings. Type A Quantity (21.6 to < 1080 Ci): Type A quantities of tritium use DOT Specification 7A containers, properly marked and surveyed prior to shipment. A number of different packages are available from small cans, 55 and 85 gallon drums, 4 x 4 x 7-foot steel boxes, up to and including oversized, specially designed containers. These containers are relatively inexpensive. Type B Quantity (> 1080 Ci): Type B quantities of tritium must be shipped in a certified DOT Type B package. There is only a limited number of these expensive Type B packages available for tritium shipment (e.g., UC-609), and special routing (i.e., prescribed routes employing highway route control such as using major highways, bypassing cities, etc.) is required.|Gaseous tritium at or near atmospheric pressure occupies 22.414 L/mole at 0 °C, and approximately 24.2 L/mole at room temperature, and requires approved packages for shipment in either Type A or B quantities. If the containers are not properly designed or if they are damaged, the gas can leak from the container into the environment.

Persons in charge of vessels or facilities are required to notify the National Response Center (NRC) immediately, when there is a release of this designated hazardous substance, in an amount equal to or greater than its reportable quantity of 100 Ci or 3.7x10+12 Bq. The toll free number of the NRC is (800) 424-8802. The rule for determining when notification is required is stated in 40 CFR 302.4 (section IV. D.3.b).

Under the implementing regulations of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) [specifically at 40 CFR 261.4(a)(4)], source, special nuclear and by-product material as defined by the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 (AEA) is excluded from the definition of solid waste (and thus, from the RCRA hazardous waste management requirements). ... Accelerator-produced tritium, on the other hand, does not qualify for this exclusion (since the tritium is produced by a linear accelerator, and does not involve the production or utilization of special nuclear materials or the extraction or concentration of source material). ... Pursuant to the RCRA regulations, it is the responsibility of the generator of a waste to determine if that waste is subject to the hazardous waste requirements [40 CFR 262.11].

The World Health Organization has estimated the total amount of tritium released from atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons through 1980 was approximately 1.2X10+20 to 2.4X10+20 Bq(1). The total environmental discharge of tritium in the effluent of pressurized water reactor (PWR), boiling water reactor (BWR), heavy water reactor (HWR) and gas cooled reactor (GCR) nuclear power plants operating worldwide in 1980 was estimated as 4X10+15 Bq(1). The total tritium activity discharged into the environment by nuclear fuel reprocessing plants operating in Windscale, UK, La Hague, France and Marcoule, France were 2X10+15 Bq in 1978(1). Annual tritium airborne release rates from the Savannah River Plant in South Carolina have ranged from 1.4X10+16 Bq to 9.9X10+16 Bq from 1974 to 1977 with an average of 4.1X10+16 Bq(1). An accidental pulse release of approximately 2X10+13 Bq of tritium from an industrial plant in Northern Switzerland moved through the sewers, to a sewage treatment plant, and was ultimately released to the River Glatt(2).

Under normal conditions the total atmospheric content of molecular T2 gas is only 11 g(1).|The level of tritium in atmospheric hydrogen increased from 3800 TU in 1948-9 to 490000 TU in 1959. /TU (Tritium Unit) signifies a ratio of 1 atom of tritium per 1X10+18 atoms of hydrogen/(1).|SOURCE DOMINATED: The concn of tritium in the atmosphere over the Bikini Atoll increased by over hundredfold when thermonuclear testing was being conducted in March, 1954(1). It has since subsided as a result of the ban on atmospheric weapon testing and also due to the half-life of the isotope(1).

The median lethal dose (LD50) of tritium assimilated by the body is estimated to be 370 GBq (10 Ci). Higher doses can be tolerated with forced fluid intake to reduce the biological half life.

/AQUATIC SPECIES/ Using an integrated approach linking different levels of biological organization, the genotoxic, cytotoxic, developmental and survival impact of tritiated water (HTO) were investigated in the embryo-larvae of marine mollusc Mytilus edulis. One-hour-old embryos were exposed to a range of concentrations (0.37-370 kBq/mL) of HTO, which delivered a dose between 0.02 and 21.41 mGy over the exposure period for different end points. Detrimental effects, if any, were monitored at different levels of biological organisation (i.e. DNA, chromosomal, cellular and individual). Genotoxic effects were assessed using molecular and cytogenetic approaches which included analysis of random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD), induction of sister chromatid exchanges (SCEs) and chromosomal aberrations (Cabs). Cytotoxic effects were evaluated by determining the proliferative rate index (PRI) of the embryo-larval cells. Developmental and survival effects were also monitored every 24 hr up to 72 hr. Results in general indicated that HTO significantly increased cytogenetic damage, cytotoxicity, developmental abnormalities and mortality of the embryo-larvae as a function of concentration or radiation dose. The analysis of RAPD profiles also revealed qualitative effects in the HTO exposed population compared to controls. However, while the embryo-larvae showed dose or concentration dependent effects for mortality, developmental abnormalities and induction of SCEs, the dose-dependent effects were not apparent for Cabs and PRI at higher doses.|/AQUATIC SPECIES/ In this study, ...the genotoxic effects and tissue-specific concentration of tritium (added as tritiated water, HTO) in the adult life stage of the edible mussel, Mytilus edulis /were evaluated/. The genotoxic effects were quantified in terms of the induction of: (a) micronuclei (MN), and (b) DNA single-strand breaks/alkali-labile sites using alkaline single-cell gel electrophoresis (Comet assay) in the hemocytes of exposed animals. The assays were optimised and validated using a range of concentrations (18-56 mg/L) of ethylmethane sulfonate (EMS), a direct-acting reference genotoxic agent, over different exposure periods. Mussels were exposed to a series of concentrations of HTO equivalent to a dose range from 12 to 485 muGy/hr for 96 hr, and different tissues and organs were then extracted and analysed. The study revealed a dose-dependent increase in the response for both the MN test and the Comet assay and for both EMS and HTO. In addition, HTO delivering dose rates below 500 muGy/hr was shown to be capable of inducing genetic damage in the hemocytes of these bivalves. The study also showed that inorganic tritium accumulated differentially in mussel tissues in a dose-dependent manner, with the gut accumulating the highest amount of radioactivity, followed by the gill, mantle, muscle, foot and byssus thread. The feces and pseudo-feces accumulated least radioactivity over the exposure period.|/AQUATIC SPECIES/ Barnacle embryos were reared in millipore cytology monitors containing approximate tritiated water (HTO) concentrations of background plus 0, 10-5, 10-4, 10-3, 10-2, 10-1, and 100 uCi/mL. After 32 days the cultures were fixed and the numbers of larvae counted. A "molting index," the percentage of larvae that molted at least once, was used to evaluate the effects of HTO on normal development. Effects were observed at concentrations as low as 7x10-6 uCi/mL, and were exponentially related to HTO concentration.|/AQUATIC SPECIES/ Permanence of suppression of the primary immune response in rainbow trout, /Oncorhynchus mykiss/, sublethally exposed to tritiated water during embryogenesis /was studied/. /Doses tested were 0.04, 0.4, 4, and 40 rads/. /After 10 weeks,/ at levels in the range of the maximum possible concentration, tritium produced measureable, dose dependent, and irreversible suppression of immune capacity in affected fish.|For more Ecotoxicity Excerpts (Complete) data for TRITIUM, RADIOACTIVE (9 total), please visit the HSDB record page.

Currently, the tritium present in the environment /from natural sources/ ... estimated to be about ... 10 to /100/ ... megacuries ... .|Tritium occurs naturally to the extent of about 1 atom per 10+18 hydrogen atoms(1) as a result of nuclear reactions induced by cosmic rays in the upper atmosphere(1,2).|The principal source of natural tritium is the nuclear reactions induced by cosmic radiation in the upper atmosphere, where fast neutrons, protons, and deuterons collide with components of the stratosphere to produce tritium. Tritium has also been observed in meteorites(1).|A significant amount of tritium from the sun's surface is believed to be brought to the earth by solar wind and flare emissions. This tritium is rapidly incorporated into water molecules and mixed into the water of the atmosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere(1).

Tritium's use as a radioactive agent in making luminous paints(1-3), bombarding particle in cyclotrons, activator in self-luminous phosphors, in cold cathode tubes, tracer in biochemical research and various special problems in chemical analysis, luminous instrument dials, and thermonuclear power research(2) may result in its release to the environment through various waste streams(SRC).|... Present in effluents from nuclear reactors and weapons. Currently, the tritium present in the environment and the relative contribution of the sources have been estimated to be about 0.5 to 1 megacurie from nuclear reactors ... and about 1X10+3 megacuries from nuclear explosions.|There are 6 isotopes of hydrogen /tritium/. Hydrogen-1 and hydrogen-2 are naturally occurring and stable. Hydrogen-3 is naturally occurring and radioactive. Hydrogen isotopes with mass numbers 4-6 are artificially produced and are radioactive(1).

There are 6 isotopes of hydrogen /tritium/. Hydrogen-1 and hydrogen-2 are naturally occurring and stable. Hydrogen-3 is naturally occurring and radioactive. Hydrogen isotopes with mass numbers 4-6 are artificially produced and are radioactive. Tritium is the a naturally occuring radioactive isotope of hydrogen and is produced as a result of the interaction of cosmic radiation with gasses present in the upper atmosphere. The natural steady-state global inventory of tritium is about 7.3 kilograms. It is naturally present as a very small percentage of ordinary hydrogen in water (HTO), both liquid and vapor and tritium gas (HT). Tritium has also been released to the environment from past atmospheric testing of nuclear weapons and from discharges from nuclear power plants. HTO is generally indistinguishable from normal water and is transported throughout the environment in the same manner as water. Rain and snowfall remove tritium from the atmosphere and volatilization of HTO from water and soil surfaces transports tritium back to the troposphere. In soil, tritium is transported by runoff, erosion and leaching. Tritium is eventually transformed to He-3 by the natural process of radioactive decay with a half-life of about 12.26 years. Occupational exposure may occur through inhalation and dermal contact with this compound at workplaces where tritium is produced or used. Monitoring data indicate that the general population may be exposed to tritium via ingestion of water and food, and dermal contact with tritium in rainfall and atmospheric samples. (SRC)

Tritium is transformed to helium-3 by the natural process of radioactive decay(1). The half-life for this reaction is 12.26 years(1).

In the prenuclear age, tritium content of rainwater ranged from < 1 to > 100 TUs (Tritium Units), depending mainly on the time between evaporation from seawater and precipitation of the water mass. Continental river water and biosphere hydrogen typically contained several TUs. The well mixed surface layer of the oceans generally had a few tenths of a TU, and the deep sea waters had undetectable levels. At the height of atmopsheric testing of nuclear weapons in 1963, the tritium content of rainwater attained a maximum of about 1X10+4 TUs in the northern hemisphere and about a tenth as high in the southern hemisphere. The content of surface seawater increased to about 5-20 TU. /TU= Tritium Unit= 1 (3)H atom/1X10+18 H atoms, corresponding to a specific radioactivity in water of about 199 mBq/kg (7.1 dpm/kg)/(1).|SURFACE WATER: Tritium is naturally present in surface waters at about 10 to 30 picocuries per liter (pCi/L)(1).|GROUNDWATER: In the US, tritium levels are lowest in groundwater in the Southwest and highest in the Midwestern states due to weather patterns and rainfall amounts(1).|DRINKING WATER: Background levels of tritium in California drinking water were reported to range from 10 to 25 pCi/L(1).

Tritium was detected in 4% of 200 portions of foods (raw vegetables, fruits, fish, and milk) collected near 33 nuclear reactors from October 1986 to September 1992(1). The maximum concentration observed in these positive detections was 70 Bq/kg, and most of the positive detections occurred in fish and vegetables in the vicinity of 4 sites(1).

NIOSH (NOES Survey 1981-1983) has statistically estimated that 5,947 workers (1,110 of these are female) are potentially exposed to tritium in the US(1). Occupational exposure may occur through inhalation and dermal contact with this compound at workplaces where tritium is produced or used(SRC). Monitoring data indicate that the general population may be exposed to tritium via ingestion of water and food, and dermal contact with tritium in rainfall and atmospheric samples(SRC). Human exposure to tritium most often occurs in the form of tritiated water, THO(2).

Because of the low energy and short range of the beta particles, tritium does not pose an external radiation hazard; the radiation is not sufficiently energetic to pass through skin. However, tritium is readily taken into the body, presenting an internal radiation hazard.|When exposed to tritiated water vapor via inhalation, people will absorb 98-99% of the activity inspired through the respiratory system. Uniform distribution throughout body fluids occurs within 90 min. Also, when exposed to such an atmosphere, tritium entering the body through the total skin area will approx equal that entering the lung. Elemental tritium (T2 or HT) is much less readily assimilated. Approx 0.004% of such activity inspired is absorbed, apparently after preliminary oxidation in the lung. Negligible amt of elemental tritium are absorbed through the skin. /Tritiated water/|Tritium, as tritiated water, is readily absorbed into the bloodstream from the gastrointestinal tract ... and distributes as body water. /Tritiated water/|The /radiation/ dose to the body if tritiated material is uniformly deposited in body water is approx 190 mrem/mCi.|For more Absorption, Distribution and Excretion (Complete) data for TRITIUM, RADIOACTIVE (20 total), please visit the HSDB record page.

The biological half-life of tritium in the body following intake of tritiated water has been found to range from 2.4 to 18 days among 300 individuals. /Tritiated water/|The body excretes tritium with a biological half life of 8-14 days (10.5 day avg), which can be reduced significantly with forced fluid intake.|In two chronically-exposed tritium dial painters, ...effective half-lives for tritium of two separate tritium pools ranging from 21 to 26 days for the first pool and 280 to 550 days for the second pool of tritium /were reported/. ...Biological half-lives for tritium in chronically exposed tritium dial painters of 12.1 to 13.4 days /were also reported/.

Emergency and Supportive Measures. Treatment of serious medical problems takes precedence over radiologic concerns. Maintain an open airway and assist ventilation if necessary. Treat coma and seizures if they occur. Replace fluid losses from gastroenteritis with intravenous crystalloid solutions. Treat leukopenia and resulting infections as needed. Immunosuppressed patients require reverse isolation and appropriate broad-spectrum antibiotic therapy. Bone marrow stimulants may help selected patients. Specific drugs and antidotes. Chelating agents or pharmacologic blocking drugs may be useful in some cases of ingestion or inhalation of certain biologically active radioactive materials, if they are given before or shortly after exposure. /Radiation (Ionizing)/ /From table/ Tritium: forced fluids, diuretics, ?hemodialysis. Water dilutes tritium, enhances urinary excretion.|Decontamination. 1. Exposure to particle-emitting solids or liquids. The victim is potentially highly contaminating to rescuers, transport vehicles, and attending health personnel. 1. Remove victims from exposure, and if their conditions permit, remove all contaminated clothing and wash the victims with soap and water. b. All clothing and cleansing water must be saved, evaluated for radioactivity, and properly disposed of. c. Rescuers should wear protective clothing and respiratory gear to avoid contamination. At the hospital, measures must be taken to prevent contamination of facilities and personnel. d. Induce vomiting or perform gastric lavage if radioactive material has been ingested. Administer activated charcoal, although its effectiveness is unknown. Certain other adsorbent materials may also be effective. e. Contact Radiation Emergency Assistance Center & Training Site (REAC/TS/: telephone (865) 576-3131 or (865) 481-1000)/ and the state radiologic health department for further advice. In some exposures, unusually aggressive steps may be needed (eg, lung lavage for significant inhalation of plutonium). 2. Electromagnetic radiation exposure. The patient is not radioactive and does not pose a contamination threat. There is no need for decontamination once the patient has been removed from the source of exposure, unless electromagnetic radiation emitter fragments are embedded in body tissues. /Radiation (Ionizing)/|Basic Treatment. Establish a patent airway (oropharyngeal or nasopharyngeal airway, if needed). Suction if necessary. Watch for signs of respiratory insufficiency and assist ventilations if necessary. Administer oxygen by nonrebreather mask at 10 to 15 mL/min. Monitor for shock and treat if necessary. Anticipate seizures and treat if necessary. Perform routine emergency care for associated injuries. ... Perform routine basic life support care as necessary. /Radioactives I, II, and III/|Advanced Treatment. Consider orotracheal or nasotracheal intubation for airway control in the patient who is unconscious or is in severe respiratory distress. Monitor cardiac rhythm and treat arrhythmias as necessary. Start IV administration of 0.9% saline (NS) or lactated Ringer's (LR) TKO. For hypotension with signs of hypovolemia, administer fluid cautiously. Watch for signs of fluid overload. Treat seizures with diazepam or lorazepam. Perform routine advanced life support care as needed. Use proparacaine hydrochloride to assist eye irrigation. /Radioactives I, II, and III/|For more Antidote and Emergency Treatment (Complete) data for TRITIUM, RADIOACTIVE (8 total), please visit the HSDB record page.

/HUMAN EXPOSURE STUDIES/ The body does not readily absorb H2, HT, HD, D2, DT, or T2 from inhaled gases or through the skin. If inhaled in elemental form, almost all tritium in the gas is exhaled. Only a very small fraction is retained in the lungs. Tritium in the form of water (HTO, DTO, and T2O) is adsorbed through the skin and in the lungs from inhaled gases. Tritium in water form is readily retained in the body and remains with a biological half-life of approximately 10 days. Due to the body's ready adsorption of tritium in the form of tritiated water, exposure to tritiated water in air is on the order of 15,000 to 25,000 times more hazardous than exposure to gaseous tritium (HT, DT, and T2).|/CASE REPORTS/ A woman was accidentally exposed to tritiated gas that escaped from glass capillary tubes. She incorporated about 35 GBq (1 Ci) of tritiated water. After several hours of delay, treatment was initiated to reduce the exposure by enhanced fluid intakes and forced diuresis. She was followed for chromosomal aberrations for 11 years. The authors monitored the number of dicentric chromosomes found in lymphocytes, and found that they have fallen over the years with a half-time of 3.3 years. No other significant clinical abnormalities were noted.|/CASE REPORTS/ Urine samples from eight male radiation workers who had an unplanned acute tritiated water intake were measured for tritium-in-urine up to 300 d post-exposure. During the first month or so post-exposure, these individuals increased their fluid intakes to accelerate the turnover rate of tritium in the body for dose mitigation. Their daily fluid intakes reverted to normal levels in the latter period of the study. A non-linear regressional analysis of the tritium-in-urine data showed that the average biological half-life of tritium in body water, with standard deviation, was 6.3+/-1.0 days (range, 5.0-8.1 d) and 8.4+/-2.0 days (range, 6.2-12.8 d) during the respective periods of increased fluid intake and the later period of normal fluid intake. A longer term component of tritium excretion was also observed with average biological half-life of 74+/-18 days (range, 58-104 d), indicating the incorporation of tritium, and its retention, in the organic fractions of the body. A mathematical model was developed and used to estimate the dose increase from the metabolized organically bound tritium on the basis of the kinetics of tritium-in-urine. The model accounts for a change in the rates of urinary excretion caused by variable fluid intakes. The average dose to the body, for the eight male workers, due to the metabolized organically bound tritium was estimated to be 6.2+/-1.3% (range, 3.5% to 8.9%) of the committed effective dose due to tritium in the body water. This value for the dose increase from organically bound tritium is in the range of the current recommendations of the International Commission on Radiological Protection, i.e., organically bound tritium incorporated into the body contributes about 10% of the dose to the body water following tritiated water intakes.|/BIOMONITORING/ For bioassay purposes, urine is normally used for determining tritium concentrations in body water. Workers who may be or who have been exposed to tritium are normally required to submit urine samples for bioassay periodically. The sampling period may be daily, biweekly, or longer, depending on the potential for significant exposure. Special urine samples are normally required after an incident or a work assignment with a high potential for exposure. After a possible exposure, the worker should empty the bladder 1 to 2 hours later. A sample taken after the bladder is emptied should be reasonably representative of the body water concentration. A sample collected before equilibrium is established will not be representative because of dilution in the bladder, or because of initial high concentration in the blood. However, any early sample may still be useful as a sign of the potential seriousness of the exposure.|For more Human Toxicity Excerpts (Complete) data for TRITIUM, RADIOACTIVE (9 total), please visit the HSDB record page.

Hydrogen 3

Gas packaged in ampules and in tagged cmpd such as water, streptomycin, cortisone, epinephrine, octadecane, stearic acid ... .

Tritium: ACTIVE|US Patent 4173620, assigned to Doryokuro Kakunenryo Kaihatsu Jigyodan, Japan describes a method of producing a high purity tritium gas by extracting tritium from tritium-containing heavy water.|The principal USA site of production is the Savannah River Plant near Aiken, SC. /Former/|The United States has not produced tritium since 1988, when the Department of Energy's (DOE's) production facility site in South Carolina closed. Immediate tritium needs are being met by recycling tritium from dismantled U.S. nuclear weapons. According to DOE, resumption of tritium production is essential for maintaining the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile. ... On December 22, 1998, the DOE Secretary announced that he had chosen the light water reactor technology as the primary means for tritium production; the accelerator design will be retained as a backup. He selected the Tennessee Valley Authority's (TVA's) Watts Bar Nuclear Plant and Sequoyah Nuclear Plant, Units 1 and 2, in Tennessee as the preferred facilities for producing future supplies of tritium. ... The tritium will still be shipped to (in the form of tritium producing burnable absorber rods) and extracted at the Savannah River site.|Tritium /can be concentrated/ by electrolysis of tritiated water. ... Low temp (20-25 K) distillation ... has been successfully applied to the separation of tritium from the other hydrogen isotopes. ... Concentration by gas chromatography has also been demonstrated.|The ordinary isotope of hydrogen, H, is known as protium. In 1932, Urey announced this discovery of a stable isotope, deuterium (2H or D) with an atomic weight of 2. Deuterium is present in natural hydrogen to the extent of 0.015%. Two years later and unstable isotope, tritium (3H) with an atomic weight of 3 was discovered.

Method: AOAC 969.48; Procedure: scintillation spectrometric method; Analyte: tritium; Matrix: water; Detection Limit: not provided.|Ionization chambers are used as process stream monitors, leak detectors, stack monitors, breathing air monitors, detectors for surface contamination, and detectors instrumented with vibrating reed electrometers. With the latter instrument, concn of tritiated water vapor in air of 370 uBq/ml (1X10-8 uCi/ml) (STP) can be measured.|The thermal conductivity analyzer ... is frequently used in continuous monitors for tritium in binary gas mixtures for immediate detection of process change.|The thermal energy generated by decay ... /of tritium/ can be used with a specially designed calorimeter to measure the quantity of tritium in a system of known heat capacity.|For more Analytic Laboratory Methods (Complete) data for TRITIUM, RADIOACTIVE (19 total), please visit the HSDB record page.

Method: Determination of tritium in water and biological tissue (direct method); Procedure: liquid scintillation spectrometry; Analyte: tritium; Matrix: water and biological tissue; Detection Limit: not provided.|Methods of Analysis. Tritium is collected primarily as/ water vapor/ HTO along with water (H2O) by distillation and then determined from its beta emission in a liquid scintillation system. No gamma rays are emitted. The distillation process is usually performed from a basic solution of potassium permangenate to oxidize radionuclides and organic compounds, preventing them from distilling over and subsequently interfering with counting. Charcoal can also be added to the distillation mixture as an additional measure to remove organic material. Volatile iodine radionuclides can be precipitated as silver iodide before distillation. Another distillation technique involves the use of cyclohexane to form an azeotropic (low boiling point) mixture. This technique is sometimes used in analysis of biota samples. Tritium may be analyzed, indirectly, by mass spectrometry of its progeny, 3He.|Bioassay monitoring for intakes of tritiated water is relatively simple and involves sampling a representative body fluid. Any body fluid can be used, but from a practical standpoint urine is the medium of choice. Because dosimetry can be readily performed using concentration data and because the models are quite simple, a single voiding (spot) urine sample is sufficient to obtain an adequate volume for analysis. Only a few milliliters are actually used in the liquid scintillation analysis procedure. Sufficient time should pass following exposure to allow for uniform distribution throughout body fluids. The NCRP suggests that 2 or more hours may be required for this (NCRP 1976). For this reason, it is usually recommended that tritium samples be collected at home using a multiple voiding sampling protocol to obtain an average concentration.