On Thu, Nov 7, 2013 at 1:27 PM, Mark Gibbs <[email protected]> wrote: Another thing ... if low energy gamma is being blocked by the reactor wall > after some prolonged period of operation wouldn't the inside of the wall > show an elevated level of radiation? >
I'm not a nuclear scientist, but I'll try this one -- I think gammas are basically "clean," in the sense that they do not generally give rise to further radiation. The main problem with them as far as human health is concerned is that they're penetrating and energetic -- they cook living organisms from the inside and break apart molecules, leading to free radicals. Once the energy of the photons drop below a certain level, by one understanding, they're no longer gammas (they become x-rays and other types of radiation). So in this sense there are only high-energy gammas. There is the possibility of photodisintegration, where a gamma knocks a nucleon free from a nucleus. I guess this could lead to a radioactive daughter, but I'm not sure how much photodisintegration is likely to occur at the levels we typically consider here. Eric
