THE INTERACTION OF RADON DECAY PRODUCTS WITH AEROSOLS.
Abstract
An instrumented plastic chamber was constructed and used to study the stability of some submicron dioctyl phthalate (D.O.P.) aerosols and their interaction with the short-lived radioactive decay products of radon (222Rn). The degree of attachment of the radon decay products to the D.O.P. aerosols in this chamber has been shown to be a function of the relative areas of the aerosol and wall surfaces. At high aerosol concentrations (100,000 particles/cu cm), 90% or more of the short-lived decay products are attached to aerosol particles. At lower aerosol concentrations and particularly when convection increases the availability of the walls for deposition, the airborne radioactivity is much less. Under the proper conditions appreciable quantities of unattached radon descendants will remain airborne. A few preliminary studies with these 'free' atoms or simple molecules have shown that they are effectively retained by fibrous filters. They thus provide a useful tool for evaluating the retentivity of filter media toward extremely small particles and for studying the mechanism of particle capture through diffusive processes. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 31, 1968
- Accession Number
- AD0684437
Entities
People
- A. W. Saunders Jr.
- L. B. Lockhart Jr.
- R. L. Patterson Jr.
Organizations
- United States Naval Research Laboratory