Radioactivity in Antiques

53 点作者 nowandlater超过 4 年前

13 条评论

dhosek超过 4 年前

Even more widespread and arguably of greater risk is the widespread use of lead. I'd assumed that anything produced in the last twenty years or so would be lead-free and it turns out I'd assumed wrong. Garden hose fixtures often contain lead [1], and there are recalls of popular toys with red or yellow paint [2]. And this is just going through what's still in my browser history.[1] <a href="https://ideas.time.com/2012/08/02/is-your-garden-hose-toxic/" rel="nofollow">https://ideas.time.com/2012/08/02/is-your-garden-hose-toxic/</a> [2] <a href="https://tamararubin.com/2018/09/reminder-june-2007-thomas-the-tank-engine-wooden-toy-recall/" rel="nofollow">https://tamararubin.com/2018/09/reminder-june-2007-thomas-th...</a>

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serf超过 4 年前

Vaseline/uranium glass is cool looking. I have a few display pieces.Another source of radioactive antiques are things made of jadeite.safe bet that anything older then 40 years old, glass or glass-like, and florescent is probably doped with something unsafe -- but they still make wonderful trophies.Sadly my military USSR watch with radium painted arms has faded away and no longer glows. The machined trefoil on the back lid of it is still pretty cool, though.Also, the article mentions it briefly, but radiation is one of the things to worry about least when using vintage ceramic goods. Those glazes are jam-packed with metals that are well known to be carcinogenic now-a-days.

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vharuck超过 4 年前

Women who painted the watches and other things with radium to make them glow in the dark became known as "radium girls."<a href="https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radium_Girls" rel="nofollow">https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radium_Girls</a>They were told it was safe, so some even intentionally painted their teeth.

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gammarator超过 4 年前

I once had my home swept for radioactive materials (long story). After the inspectors finished a few hours of trying to distinguish a few Geiger counter clicks from the natural background, the lead tech pulled a small orange Fiestaware bowl out of his bag. "Did you know these are hot?" he asked, and put it up next to the wand. The Geiger counter just screamed, which was both alarming and reassuring given the context.

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sixstringtheory超过 4 年前

Heard about Radithor, and old energy drink containing radium, on a podcast a while back: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radithor" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radithor</a>> Eben Byers, a wealthy American socialite, athlete, industrialist and Yale College graduate, died from Radithor radium poisoning in 1932. Byers was buried in a lead-lined coffin; when exhumed in 1965 for study, his remains were still highly radioactive.Apparently the bottles are still collectors' items.

rwhitman超过 4 年前

My parents were antique collectors. They were very proud of a glow-in-the-dark fireman's helmet circa 1940's that my dad bought. They told me it was radium paint and to keep away from it.I will say it does it's job. That helmet was still glowing in the dark just fine

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timw4mail超过 4 年前

Some photographic lenses have throrium[1] glass. Even though it is mildly radioactive, it's pretty safe to use.[1] <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thoriated_glass" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thoriated_glass</a>

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Jeema101超过 4 年前

Here is an interesting article I found a while ago on this subject by a vintage watch collector who took some measurements of his radium dial watches using a Geiger counter:<a href="https://www.vintagewatchstraps.com/luminous.php" rel="nofollow">https://www.vintagewatchstraps.com/luminous.php</a>The dose rates that he measured varied considerably depending on the watch. One very radioactive one was about ~30 times the background dose rate with the glass off and in very close proximity. Probably not something you'd want to wear on your wrist every day...

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radiateaway超过 4 年前

Apparently David Hahn used the radium paint from old clocks to make a neutron gun for irradiating his DIY nuclear reactor.If you haven't heard about that, it's a remarkable story about a precocious kid who could put Ferris Bueller to shame. He cons material supply companies, gets arrested for stealing smoke detectors, and single-handedly creates a superfund site. And in the end, he gets to fulfill his dream of working with nuclear energy by serving on a nuclear aircraft carrier.Honestly, it reads like a movie script and makes me ashamed of how I squandered my youth:<a href="https://harpers.org/archive/1998/11/the-radioactive-boy-scout/" rel="nofollow">https://harpers.org/archive/1998/11/the-radioactive-boy-scou...</a>Also, if you can find a PDF of "The Golden Book of Chemistry Experiments" which that article occasionally quotes...wow. How did kids survive the '70s? Page 35, "making chlorine gas in the home lab"...

throwaway189262超过 4 年前

Missing from this list are some historical and modern sources.This EPA page has a better list <a href="https://www.epa.gov/radiation/what-kinds-consumer-products-contain-radioactive-materials" rel="nofollow">https://www.epa.gov/radiation/what-kinds-consumer-products-c...</a>Missing from both is radioactive electronics. In lamps, electron sources, spark gaps, it's common to use radioactive materials to make ionization easier. In a lamp for example this would make it start at lower voltage<a href="https://instructional-resources.physics.uiowa.edu/demos/7d3046-fluorescent-lights-radioactive-starter-ballasts" rel="nofollow">https://instructional-resources.physics.uiowa.edu/demos/7d30...</a><a href="https://www.orau.org/ptp/collection/consumer%20products/electrontubes.htm" rel="nofollow">https://www.orau.org/ptp/collection/consumer%20products/elec...</a>

sigsergv超过 4 年前

There are also old smoke detectors that contain alpha-emitting americium.<a href="https://www.epa.gov/radtown/americium-ionization-smoke-detectors" rel="nofollow">https://www.epa.gov/radtown/americium-ionization-smoke-detec...</a>

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01100011超过 4 年前

The danger from radiation in these products is so low it shouldn't be a problem unless you ingest or inhale it.

jungletime超过 4 年前

radon gas map <a href="https://cdn.treehouseinternetgroup.com/cms_images/509/radon-zones-epa-map.jpg" rel="nofollow">https://cdn.treehouseinternetgroup.com/cms_images/509/radon-...</a>