Tritium vials

[willpine]

Hi
I was wondering if anybody had tritium vials? And how do they make them?

Thanks
Will

[StarHalo]

I would have a large collection if the stuff weren't so expensive - tritium is the most expensive matter on Earth per mass. The vials are made by culling the tritium byproduct given off deep within the core of a nuclear reactor, so it's not exactly easy to come by.

[yifu]

Yep, it's somewhere around 20 000 USD per gram... But you can get tritium vials on the marketplace, B@rt sells them at reasonable prices but they only contain a few micrograms of it.

[Faris03]

Yep, it's somewhere around 20 000 USD per gram... But you can get tritium vials on the marketplace, B@rt sells them at reasonable prices but they only contain a few micrograms of it.

Hey is B@rt still around? does he still sell TiGlows? can send him a message??? wanting Ice blue titanium tritium keyring...

[yifu]

Hey is B@rt still around? does he still sell TiGlows? can send him a message??? wanting Ice blue titanium tritium keyring...

Of course, his sales thread is here http://www.cpfmarketplace.com/mp/sho...-part-deux-bis
Just give him a PM.

[Wisdom]

Yep, it's somewhere around 20 000 USD per gram... But you can get tritium vials on the marketplace, B@rt sells them at reasonable prices but they only contain a few micrograms of it.

Just curious.. how do you weigh something that is lighter than air? I'd imagine Tritium is sold by unit volume under some specified pressure, rather than weight..
-\Visdom

[ToyTank]

Just curious.. how do you weigh something that is lighter than air? I'd imagine Tritium is sold by unit volume under some specified pressure, rather than weight..
-\Visdom

All gases have the same number of molecules in any volume at STP(same/standard temperature pressure)

So if you know mass of the molecule, temperature and volume you can calculate the mass.

Most comparisons use Ci(Curie) which is a measurement of the radioactive energy

Also be aware the stuff is regulated in many places and you may break the law just having a keychain. Unfortunately the NRC has shut down some USA sellers here and on Ebay. B@rt or farid on CPFMP is the best bet IMHO

[ToyTank]

Double post

[sogmono]

All gases have the same number of molecules in any volume at STP(same/standard temperature pressure)

So if you know mass of the molecule, temperature and volume you can calculate the mass.

Most comparisons use Ci(Curie) which is a measurement of the radioactive energy

Also be aware the stuff is regulated in many places and you may break the law just having a keychain. Unfortunately the NRC has shut down some USA sellers here and on Ebay. B@rt or farid on CPFMP is the best bet IMHO

Hello ToyTank. John here from Ont, Canada. I don't know much if anything about this stuff. If it is radio active, why aren't there a lot more government selling / trading restrictions on tritium? Lets face it. Anything that is "made by culling the tritium byproduct given off deep within the core of a nuclear reactor" a substance that glows in the dark for ten years or more can't be good. How dangerous is long term exposure to tritium and in what amounts. Would there be any long term health effects from exposure to an amount of tritium contained in lets say a glowworm key fob trailing aroud in your pocket 24 hours a day? How dangerous really is this stuff?

Thanks for your time John

[StarHalo]

How dangerous really is this stuff?

From the last "When Tritium Attacks" thread:

Should it break: The actual radioactive component in the vial is an isotope of hydrogen, which is much lighter than air; the tiny amount gas would immediately disperse and float away. Even if you were standing directly over a freshly broken vial, odds are the gas would be too dispersed for even a single molecule to reach your breathing space. If the vial were in your hand or pocket - again, it's a radioactive gas and not solid or fluid, it would simply float off and away, no more glow from your vial.

Worst case scenario: You break the vial on a table/desk, then IMMEDIATELY cup your hands around the vial and place your face directly over it and inhale deeply. If this were to happen, you'd receive as much radiation as ...a dental x-ray.

That's the beauty of the tritium vial design, rather than relying on the radioactive substance itself to glow, it uses a strong phosphor that glows brightly with very little energy, so you can use a remarkably weak source of radioactivity to produce a glow. The beta radiation that comes off of a tritium vial cannot penetrate tissue paper, and can only make it about a quarter inch from the vial in open air before dissipating. It's so weak that even if you were to set a Geiger Counter on its most sensitive setting, then press the probe directly onto the vial, it would not register a reading at all.

[sogmono]

StarHalo Thank you for your rest assuring and informative reply. I feel a little less ignorant and more educated on the subject.

John

[Empire]

StarHalo Thank you for your rest assuring and informative reply. I feel a little less ignorant and more educated on the subject.

John

You weren't ignorant, It was a simple question

[sogmono]

You weren't ignorant, It was a simple question

Thank you Empire. When I used the term Ignorant, I was referring to it by definition. : lack of knowledge, education, or awareness. I simply meant that I did not know anything about the subject of tritium.

John

[127.0.0.1]

I have 2 new geiger counters, perfectly calibrated [one with a mica window] and a whole bunch of tritium vials,

FACT
tritium vials do emit low energy gamma radiation in the form of x-rays, but the amount is harmless (lets say low risk)

tritium beta radiation hits the phosphors, and the deceleration of the particle sometimes emits secondary x-rays (Bremsstrahlung)
these x-rays DO leave the tritium vial and are detectable, and also can penetrate skin less than 1cm if the skin is pressed right
up to the vial. the x-rays do not travel more than 1 or 1.5 cm in open air...they are very weak, and there are very few of them

one or two or 5 trit vials directly laying on my detector tube will increase CPM from background of average 20+- to 25-30
ten trit vials (1x5mm) might push it to 50CPM. more trits, higher cpm. with 10 small trits and 3 large ones I got a CPM of 100 sustained.

is this any more risky than standing outdoors in the sun ? nope. but added risk from trits is not zero...people commonly
get more radiation exposure from the environment than trits will ever do
----
do I carry trits on my keys and carry a trit light everywhere. You bet.

Do I know for sure if trits emit radiation past the glass vial or not ?
absolutely, and they do...

[StarHalo]

I have 2 new geiger counters, perfectly calibrated [one with a mica window] and a whole bunch of tritium vials,

Awesome test, thanks for the data! How does the reading from a trit vial or two compare to a banana?

[127.0.0.1]

Awesome test, thanks for the data! How does the reading from a trit vial or two compare to a banana?

I won't be testing bananas.

[StarHalo]

I won't be testing bananas.

I'm wagering the banana will be more radioactive than the tritium vial

[AnAppleSnail]

FACT
tritium vials do emit low energy gamma radiation in the form of x-rays, but the amount is harmless (lets say low risk)

How much? I'm told that many static discharges (eg peeling scotch tape, lightning) have a chance to produce X-rays, but they do not get far before being attenuated in air.

Lightning X-ray photo tragically has no image of lightning.

[archimedes]

( ... never mind ... )

[Empire]

( ... never mind ... )