Radioisotope Information: IRON - 59
(59Fe)
| Physical Half-life: | 44.5 days | ||
| Radiations: | ß- 466 (53%), 273 (45%) & 131 (1.4%) keV Gamma 1291 (44%), 1099(56%), 192 (3%) & 142 (1%) keV |
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| External Exposure: | External hazard. Radiation dose from 1 mCi of 59Fe is 64 mR/hr from gamma and 5100 mRads/hr from ß at 10 cm away. | ||
| Biological Data: | ALI | 0.8 mCi (ingestion), 0.3 mCi (inhalation) | |
| Biological half-life | 700 days | ||
| Effective half-life | 42 days | ||
| Critical Organs | Lower Large Intestine (ingestion) Spleen and Lungs (inhalation) |
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| Bioassay | Urinalysis (within 1st 24 hours) Whole Body Counting |
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| Shielding: | HVL 1.01 cm of lead; TVL 3.36 cm of lead (Shielding of betas is accomplished while shielding for gammas.) |
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| Monitoring & Efficiency |
LSC (Eff. ~60%) Thin-window GM (Eff. ~10%) |
Special Considerations
- Use forceps with rubber sleeves to handle unshielded sources and potentially contaminated vessels, and work at arms length.
- Near a 59Fe source, beta radiation doses can be much higher than the gamma dose.
- Shielding the high energy gamma radiation with lead will also stop all of the ß's and Bremstralung radiation.
- Always store 59Fe vials in lead containers or behind shields.
- Wear a radiation badge when handling 1.0 mCi or more.
For additional information contact the Radiation Safety Program at 229-4275.
Updated February 27, 2008 by SAK