10 Interesting Facts About Radioactive Tritium

Tritium is the radioactive isotope of the element hydrogen. It has many useful
applications.

Tritium Facts
Tritium is also known as hydrogen-3 and has an element symbol T or 3H. The
nucleus of a tritium atom is called a triton and consists of three particles: one
proton and two neutrons. The word tritium comes from Greek the word "tritos",
which means "third". The other two isotopes of hydrogen are protium (most common
form) and deuterium.
Tritium has an atomic number of 1, like other hydrogen isotopes, but it has a
mass of about 3 (3.016).
Tritium decays via beta particle emission, with a half-life of 12.3 years. The
beta decay releases 18 keV of energy, where tritium decays into helium-3 and a
beta particle. As the neutron changes into a proton, the hydrogen changes into
helium. This is an example of the natural transmutation of one element into
another.
Ernest Rutherford was the first person to produce tritium. Rutherford, Mark
Oliphant, and Paul Harteck prepared tritium from deuterium in 1934 but were
unable to isolate it. Luis Alvarez and Robert Cornog realized tritium was
radioactive and successfully isolated the element.
Trace amounts of tritium occur naturally on Earth when cosmic rays interact with
the atmosphere. Most tritium that is available is made via neutron activation of
lithium-6 in a nuclear reactor. Tritium is also produced by nuclear fission of
uranium-235, uranium-233, and polonium-239. In the United States, tritium is
produced at a nuclear facility in Savannah, Georgia. At the time of a report
issued in 1996, only 225 kilograms of tritium had been produced in the United
States.
Tritium can exist as an odorless and colorless gas, like ordinary hydrogen, but
the element is mainly found in liquid form as part of tritiated water or T2O,
a form of heavy water.
A tritium atom has the same +1 net electrical charge as any other hydrogen atom,
but tritium behaves differently from the other isotopes in chemical reactions
because the neutrons produce a stronger attractive nuclear force when another
atom is brought close. Consequently, tritium is better able to fuse with lighter
atoms to form heavier ones.
External exposure to tritium gas or tritiated water is not very dangerous because
tritium emits such a low energy beta particle that the radiation cannot penetrate
the skin. Tritium does pose some health risks if it is ingested, inhaled, or
enters the body through an open wound or injection. The biological half-life
ranges from around 7 to 14 days, so bioaccumulation of tritium is not a
significant concern. Because beta particles are a form of ionizing radiation, the
expected health effect from internal exposure to tritium would be an elevated
risk of developing cancer.
Tritium has many uses, including self-powered lighting, as a component in nuclear
weapons, as a radioactive label in chemistry lab work, as a tracer for biological
and environmental studies, and for controlled nuclear fusion.
High levels of tritium were released into the environment from nuclear weapons
testing in the 1950s and 1960s. Prior to the tests, it is estimated only 3 to 4
kilograms of tritium was present on the Earth's surface. After testing, the
levels rose 200% to 300%. Much of this tritium combined with oxygen to form
tritiated water. One interesting consequence is that the tritiated water could be
traced and used as a tool to monitor the hydrologic cycle and to map ocean
currents.