Disposal of Toxic and Radioactive Materials with Special Focus on the Philippines

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Disposal of Toxic

and Radioactive Materials


Abstract:

Toxic and Radioactive waste materials has been brought to life by humans being a by-product of numerous undertaking efforts ever since the breakthrough discovery of radioactivity in 1896 by Antoine Henri Becquerel. Since World War II, toxic, as well as radioactive waste materials have been produced by army weaponry manufacturing and screening; exploration; electrical energy generation; healthcare analysis and therapy; biological and chemical research; along with other commercial uses. Because of the hazardus and fatal biological effects of radiation and toxins to humans, the governments of different countries have developed ways on managing these waste products in order to avoid contamination.

The four types of toxic wastes (very-low level waste, low-level waste, intermediate level waste, and high-level waste) all have specific techniques for proper disposal - the methods increasing in level in proportion to the radiation degree or severity of effects. There are also secure solutions to the disposal of used fuel and those from nuclear power plants. These methods include burying them underground or placing them in a waste storage pond.

This research will focus on the Philippine conditions regarding the issue on toxic wastes as well as provide an international overview on the process and procedures observed from radioactive products.

The importance  of these measures can be attributed from the effect that safety has on both the environment and the community. Without these, the human race and every living thing would helplessly pass away from cancer-related diseases without having any definite cure. The prevention should not only start from the authorities but also from the responsibility that each individual has been given in order to fully resolve this significant issue.


Discussion and Explanation:

Nuclear energy stands out as one of the few energy-producing technological innovations which calls for maximum accountability for all its waste products and completely charges this into the resulting product or service (e.a. electric bills). The quantity of radioactive waste products is extremely little in accordance with waste products created by fossil energy that is generated for electricity.

Used nuclear energy could very well be handled in the form of resource or merely as a waste material.  Secure techniques for the final disposal of dangerous radioactive waste materials are scientifically tested; the worldwide consensus is that this has to be deep geological disposal, but first, a brief history on radioactivity.

In 1896, Henri Becquerel broadened the subject of chemistry to incorporate nuclear modifications when he found that uranium released radiation. Shortly after Becquerel's breakthrough, Marie Sklodowska Curie started studying radioactivity and accomplished much of the groundbreaking work towards nuclear changes. Curie discovered that radiation was proportional to the quantity of radioactive components present, and she suggested that the radiation was a property of atoms (as in opposition to a chemical property of a compound). Marie Curie was the very first female to acquire a Nobel Prize and the very first individual to earn two.

In 1902, Frederick Soddy suggested the idea in which "radioactivity is a result of a natural change of an isotope of one element into an isotope of a different element." Nuclear reactions consist of modifications in particles in an atom's nucleus and therefore result in a modification within the atom itself.

Virtually all aspects of the nuclear energy cycle create a number of radioactive waste materials (radwaste) and the price of taking care of and getting rid of this is included in a portion of the electricity expenses, For example, it is internalised and taken care of by the consumers.

From each phase of the energy cycle there are actually successful solutions to eliminate the radioactive waste products securely. For very low and intermediate degree waste products these are mostly being carried out. For dangerous waste products a number of countries wait for the deposition of a sufficient amount of of it to justify constructing geological repositories; many others, including the United States of America, have experienced political delays.

The radioactivity of all nuclear waste materials decays as time passes. Every single radionuclidea (an atom with an unstable nucleus) included in the waste materials has a half-life – the time required for one half of its atoms to decay and therefore for it reduce one half of its radioactivity. Radionuclides with prolonged half-lives are usually alpha and beta emitters – making their management easier – while those with shorter half-lives have a tendency to give off the more penetrating gamma radiation. At some point all radioactive waste products decay into non-radioactive components. The more radioactive an isotope is, the more quickly it decays.

The primary goal in taking care of and getting rid of radioactive (or other) waste materials is to safeguard individuals and also the natural environment. This implies isolating and diluting the waste materials so the rate or amount of any radionuclides taken back to the biosphere is undamaging. To make this happen, virtually all waste products are enclosed and supervised – several evidently require deep and permanent burial. From nuclear energy, nothing is permitted to bring about hazardous pollution.

Types of radioactive waste products:

Very Low level waste

Very Low level waste (VLLW) consists of radioactive components at a degree that is not even regarded as detrimental to people or the nearby environment. It is made up primarily of destroyed material (which includes cement, plaster, stones, steel, valves, pipes etc) created during treatment or dismantling procedures on nuclear sites. Many other industries, including food processing, chemical, metal etc also make VLLW resulting from the amount of natural radioactivity found in specific minerals utilized in their production processes. The waste materials is thus discarded with domestic decline, even though nations like France are currently developing facilities to contain VLLW in specifically made VLLW removal facilities.

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Low-level waste

Low-level waste (LLW) is produced from hostipal wards and factories, as well as the nuclear energy cycle. It includes papers, cloths, equipment, garments, filters etc, that have minimal amounts of primarily short-lived radioactivity. It does not call for safeguarding during handling and transfer and is ideal for shallow terrain burial. To lessen its quantity, it is usually compressed or incinerated prior to disposal. It consists of 90% of the volume but merely 1% of the radioactivity of all radioactive waste materials.

Intermediate-level waste

Intermediate-level waste (ILW) consists of greater levels of radioactivity and several call for safeguarding. ...

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