VZL 2007, 76(3):105-107

Radiotoxicology of Polonium

Jiří Patočka ORCID..., Leoš Navrátil, Pavel Kuna
Katedra radiologie a toxikologie Zdravotně sociální fakulty Jihočeské univerzity, České Budějovice

Polonium (Po) je chemický prvek který má v periodické tabulce atomové číslo 84. Polonium bylo objeveno Marii Sklodowskou-Curie a jejím manželem Pierrem Curie v roce 1898 a nazváno na počest Mariiny rodné země Polska. V přírodě je polonium velmi vzácný prvek pro velmi krátký poločas všech jeho izotopů. Známe 25 izotopů polonia a všechny jsou radioaktivní. Mají atomové hmotnosti od 194 do 218. Nejdostupnějším izotopem je 210Po, které se dá vyrobit ozařováním přírodního 209Bi neutrony. 210Po je alfa-zářič s poločasem rozpadu 138,39 dne a rozpadá se na svůj dceřiný izotop 206Pb. Alfa-záření emitované poloniem může snadno poškodit biologickou tkáň, jestliže je polonium spolknuto nebo inhalováno. Nicméně přes kůži neprochází, a není proto nebezpečné, pokud se nedostane do těla. Největším nebezpečím polonia je jeho silná radioaktivita. Díky tomu je 210Po nebezpečné již v mikrogramových množstvích a vyžaduje speciální přístroje i manipulaci. Polonium je asi pětmilionkrát toxičtější než kyanovodík.

Keywords: Polonoium; Chemie; Radioaktivita; Radiotoxicita; Riziko

Polonium (Po) is a chemical elemement in the periodic table that has the atomic number 84. Polonium was discovered by Marie-Sklodowska-Curie and her husband Pierre Curie in 1898 and was later named after Marie's native land of Poland. It is a very rare element in nature because of the very short half-life of all its isotopes. Polonium has 25 known isotopes and all of them are radioactive. They have atomic masses that range from 194 to 218. 210Po is the most widely available when natural 209Bi is bombarded with neutrons. 210Po is an alpha emitter that has a half-life of 138.39 days; it decays directly to its daughter isotope 206Pb. Alpha particles emitted by polonium will damage organic tissue easily if polonium is ingested or inhaled. Though they do not penetrate the epidermis and hence are not hazardous if the polonium is outside the body. The main hazard of polonium is its strong radioactivity. Even in microgram amounts, handling 210Po is extremely dangerous, requiring specialized equipment and strict handling procedures. Polonium is around 5 million times more toxic than hydrogen cyanide.

Keywords: Polonium; Chemistry; Radioactivity; Radiotoxicity; Risk

Received: January 30, 2007; Published: September 1, 2007  Show citation

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Patočka, J., Navrátil, L., & Kuna, P. (2007). Radiotoxicology of Polonium. Vojenské Zdravotnické Listy, 76(3), 105-107
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