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THE PROPER ROLE OF DETERGENTS IN RELATION TO RADIOLOGICAL
DECONTAMINATION.
Harry Levin, 5 February 1951.
CONFIDENTIAL
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This report discusses the nature of six chemical compounds
cited as being effective decontaminating agents. The mechanics of their
decontaminating properties are investigated to determine whether the
effectiveness is attributable to base-exchange combinations, adsorption,
chelate reactions, polar attraction, detergency, or other characteristic
of the agent.
that:
It was determined, with respect to the six decontaminants,
1. Removal of fission products is probably due to the
decontaminants' affinity for colloidal soils on which the fission products
have lodged.
2.
Decontaminating efficiency may be due to scavenger
action rather than selective attack on certain chemical species.
peras.
id
3.
Because of adsorption and masking, the mass-action laws
for combination of decontaminants and fission products in aqueous solution
cannot predict effective limits of decontamination.
4.
Certain of the decontaminants may be effective in certain
instances and ineffective in others, even with the same species of
contaminant.
5.
It is impractical to attempt, by sensitive reactions, to
identify fission products as they are deposited after an atomic-bomb
burst.
APAG
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