Radiation pollution & noise pollution

Radiation Pollution -Types, Sources and its effects - Noise Pollution Sources and effect.

1. RADIATION POLLUTION & NOISE POLLUTION By, Anitha V

2. Radioactive Pollution Radioactive Pollution or radiation pollution is a type of Physical type of environmental pollution. Radioactive pollution can be defined as the emission of high energy particles or radioactive substance into air, water or land due to human activities in the form of radioactive waste.

3. Radiations are classified into two types, they are: Non-ionizing radiations Ionizing radiations

4. Types of Radioactive Pollution  Based on the frequency with which it occurs, radioactive pollution can be Continuous Occasional A ccidental.

5. Natural Sources Cosmic rays Terrestrial Radiation from the earth such as Radium -224,Uranium 235, Uranium 238,Thorium 232. Radon 222. Man made Radiation Nuclear Accidents From Nuclear Energy Generation Plants Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster  (2011),  Chernobyl disaster  (1986), and  Three Mile Island accident  (1979) SOURCES

6. The Use of Nuclear Weapons as Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) Hiroshima and Nagasaki (1945) Use of Radioisotopes Mining Spillage of Radioactive Chemicals Nuclear Waste Handling and Disposal Defensive Weapon Production

7. Effects of Radioactive Pollution Genetic Mutations Chromosomes and genes get altered Damage to DNA strands Genetic mutations like low weight during birth. D isfigured births. Impairment like blindness in children. Infertility.

8. Diseases Cancer Leukemia Anemia Hemorrhage A reduction in the life span leading to premature aging and premature deaths C ardiovascular complications .

9. Soil Infertility Cell Destruction Burns Effects on Wildlife Effects on Plants Effects on Marine life

10. Type of radiation Effect on body Alpha particles An alpha particle cannot enter the skin but if their sources are present inside the body then they can damage lungs and bones. Beta particles Beta particles can go inside the skin but cannot damage tissues. They have the ability to damage to eyes and skin. X-rays X-rays have ability to pass through tissues and travel far. They cannot travel through bones. They can damage cells. Gamma radiation They have an ability to easily enter the body and pass through it. Cell structure can get damage because of them.

11. Solutions to Radioactive Pollution Proper Method of Disposing of Radioactive Waste Proper Labelling Banning of Nuclear Tests Alternative Energy Sources Proper Storage Reusing Precautions at the Personal Level

12. Disposal of Radioactive Waste

13. NUCLEAR CLASSIFICATIONS Nuclear waste is segregated into following classifications. Low level waste which is not dangerous but sometimes requires shielding during handling. Intermediate waste typically is chemical sludge and other products from reactors. High level waste consists of fissionable elements from reactor core. Transuranic waste is any waste with transuranic alpha emitting radionuclides whose half-life is longer than 20 years.

14. Low Level Waste (LLW) Contains very low concentration of radioactivity. (1%) Waste which does not require shielding during normal handling and transportation. 90% volume of waste. Low level nuclear waste usually includes material used to handle the highly radioactive parts of nuclear reactors.

15. Intermediate level waste Intermediate level waste (medium level waste) Waste which requires shielding but needs little or no provision for heat dissipation during its handling and transportation. Intermediate level waste typically is chemical sludge, resins, metal fuel cladding and other products from reactors. 7% volume of the waste. 4% of the total radioactivity of all waste.

16. High level waste High level waste has a large amount of radioactive activity and is thermally hot. 3% volume of waste 95% of radioactivity. Current levels of HLW are increasing about 12,000 metric tons per year. Most HLW consists of Pu-238, 239, 240, 241, 242, Np- 237, U-236 Spent reactor fuel.

17. HLW is defined as producing more than 2 kilowatts per meter cubed of heat due to its radioactivity. It requires shielding during transport and cooling before permanent disposal. It includes used separated waste

18. Waste In Hospital/Nuclear Medical Centers Solid Waste: Solid waste mainly consists of used Molybdenum-Technetium generators. empty vessels, swabs, syringes, gloves, laboratory clothing, bench covers, absorbents etc. Liquid Waste: Liquid waste includes washing from active labs., and excreta of patients injected. Biological waste such as excreta is regarded as liquid waste. Gaseous Waste: Gaseous waste generally includes working with, tritium and tritiated water, iodine and xenon-133.

19. Radioactive Waste Management Waste generation occurs during the operational period. It can be in the form of solid, liquid or gaseous waste. Pretreatment is the initial step that occurs just after generation. It consists of collection, segregation, chemical adjustment and decontamination. Treatment involves changing the characteristics of the waste. Basic treatment concepts are volume reduction, radionuclide removal and change of composition.

20. Conditioning involves those operations that transform radioactive waste into a form suitable for handling, transportation, storage and handling. Storage facilities may be co-located with a nuclear power plant or licensed disposal facility. Retrieval involves the recovery of waste packages from storages either for inspection purpose or further storage in a disposal facility. Disposal consists of the authorized emplacement of packages of radioactive waste in a disposal facility.

21. Disposal of Low Level Waste Incineration is common with low-level waste, as this material usually consists of clothing or other common items that have simply been contaminated.

22. Near Surface Disposal: Disposal in a facility consisting of engineered channels or vaults constructed on the ground surface or up to few tens of meters below ground level. These type of wastes loses most or all of its radioactivity within 300 years. It includes contaminated equipment from the operation of nuclear power plant like clothing, rags, tools and equipment. Very short-lived low-level radioactive waste such as that from hospitals, universities and industry generally contains only small amounts of radioactive materials with short half-lives. This means that radioactivity decays away in hours or days.

23. DISPOSAL OF INTERMEDIATE LEVEL WASTE Depending on its characteristics, intermediate level radioactive wastes can be disposed in facilities of different types. Disposal could be by emplacement in a facility constructed in caves, vaults or silos at least few hundred meters below the ground level. Intermediate level radioactive wastes require long-term management. These are much bulkier materials and are first sealed in steel drums and are encased in concrete trenches.

24. DISPOSAL OF HIGH LEVEL WASTE Geological disposal: disposal in a facility constructed in tunnels, vaults or silos in a particular geological formation at least a few hundred meters below ground level. Such a facility could be designed to accept high level radioactive waste (HLW), including spent fuel if it is to be treated as waste. First used in 1999 in the US. Deep Boreholes: Deep borehole disposal is the concept of disposing high-level radioactive waste from nuclear reactors in extremely deep boreholes instead of in more traditional deep geological repositories that are excavated like mines. Similar concept to geological repositories. Kilometers deep rather then hundreds of meters. Provide further insulation from ground water.

25. Vitrification I t is a technique for the transformation of a substance into a glass (non-crystalline amorphous solid). Borosilicate glass is mainly used as medium for dealing with High Level Waste. The solidified waste is stored in stainless steel containers. Principle aims are: Minimise the volume of waste. Reduce potential hazard by conditioning it into solid form .

26. OTHER IDEAS FOR DISPOSAL

27. Sound Sound is a wave, which is created by vibrating objects and propagated through a medium from one location to another. Sound waves travel on a medium : any solid, liquid or gas Sound travels by pushing the particles of a substance. The particles push into the particles next to them, and then return to their original position. And the sound continues to travel in this form until it reaches your ear!

28. Wavelength:   is measured from crest-to-crest– or trough-to-trough, or upswing to upswing, etc. For traveling waves (sound, light, water), there is a speed (c)

29. Frequency (f) refers to how many cycles pass by per second– measured in Hertz, or Hz: cycles per second associated with this is period: T = 1/f

30. Word comes from the Latin word Noxia meaning Injury or hurt . Unwanted, unpleasant and annoying sound caused by vibration of matter. Noise pollution   is generally defined as regular exposure to elevated sound levels that may lead to adverse effects in humans or other living organisms.  It is measured in dB units . The faintest sound which can be heard by the Human ear is 1 dB .

31. How we hear the loudness of sound is affected by the frequency of the sound as well as by the amplitude. The human ear is most sensitive to sounds between 300 and 3,000 Hz. The ear is less sensitive to sounds outside this range. Most of the frequencies that make up speech are between 300 and 3,000 Hz

32. According to the World Health Organization, sound levels less than 70 dB are not damaging to living organisms, regardless of how long or consistent the exposure is. Exposure for more than 8 hours to constant noise beyond 85 dB may be hazardous. If you work for 8 hours daily in close proximity to a busy road or highway, you are very likely exposed to traffic noise pollution around 85dB.

33. Types of Noise Pollution Following are the three types of pollution: Transport Noise Neighbourhood Noise Industrial Noise

34. Sources of Noise Pollution Household Sources Social Events Commercial and Industrial Activities Transportation Construction sites Defence Equipment and launching of satellites

35. Noise Pollution Examples Unnecessary usage of horns Using loudspeakers either for religious functions or for political purposes Unnecessary usage of fireworks Industrial noise Construction noise Noise from transportation such as railway and aircraft

36. Noise Pollution During Diwali Permissible Limit of noise for fire crackers = 125dB. Noise levels generated by firecrackers. Type of firecracker Generated noise level (dB). Atom bomb. (timing bomb) 135±2 Chinese crackers 128

37. Effects of Noise Pollution on Human Health Noise pollution can be hazardous to human health in the following ways: Hypertension:  It is a direct result of noise pollution which is caused due to elevated blood levels for a longer duration. Hearing loss:  Constant exposure of human ears to loud noise that are beyond the range of sound that human ears can withstand damages the eardrums, resulting in loss of hearing. Sleeping disorders:  Lack of sleep might result in fatigue and low energy level throughout the day affecting everyday activities. Noise pollution hampers the sleep cycles leading to irritation and an uncomfortable state of mind. Cardiovascular issues:  Heart-related problems such as blood pressure level, stress and cardiovascular diseases might come up in a normal person and a person suffering from any of these diseases might feel a sudden shoot up in the level.

38. Child development . Children appear to be more sensitive to noise pollution, and a number of noise-pollution-related diseases and dysfunctions are known to affect children, from hearing impairment to psychological and physical effects. Also, children who regularly use music players at high volumes are at risk of developing hearing dysfunctions. Dementia  isn’t necessarily caused by noise pollution, but its onset can be favored or compounded by noise pollution. Psychological dysfunctions  and noise annoyance. Noise annoyance is, in fact, a recognized name for an emotional reaction that can have an immediate impact.

39. Effects of Noise Pollution on Wildlife and Marine Life Whales are among the most affected, as their hearing helps them orient themselves, feed and communicate.. Interferes the feeding habits, reproductive patterns and migration routes, and can even cause hemorrhage and death.

40. Social and Economic Costs of Noise Pollution Since noise pollution leads to sleep disturbance, it affects the individual’s work performance during the day, it leads to hypertension and cardiovascular disease and costs the health system additional time and money . I t negatively affects school performance in children.

41. Steps to Control Noise pollution Noise pollution can be effectively controlled by taking the following measures: (1) Control at receiver’s end : For people working in noisy installations, ear-protection aids like ear-plugs, ear-muffs, noise helmets, headphones etc. must be provided to reduce occupational exposure

42. (2) Suppression of noise at source: It can be achieved by following methods: Designing, fabricating and using quieter machines to replace the noisy ones. Proper lubrication and better maintenance of machines. Installing noisy machines in sound proof chambers. Covering noise-producing machine parts with sound-absorbing materials to check noise production. Reducing the noise produced from a vibrating machine by vibration damping i.e. making a layer of damping material (rubber, neoprene, cork or plastic) beneath the machine. Using silencers to control noise from automobiles, ducts, exhausts etc

43. (3) Acoustic Zoning : There should be silence zones near the residential areas, educational institutions and above all, near hospitals. Zoning of noisy industrial areas, bus terminals and railway stations, aerodromes etc. away from the residential areas i.e. increasing the distance between source and receiver.

44. (4) Sound Insulation at Construction Stages: It reduces the chances of noise nuisance in future. Some of these measures could be: The space/cracks that get left between the door and the wall should be packed with sound absorbing material. Sound insulation can be done by constructing windows with double or triple panes of glass and filling the gaps with sound absorbing materials. Acoustical tiles, perforated plywood etc. can be fixed on walls, ceilings, floors etc. to reduce noise (especially for sound proof recording rooms etc.)

45. (5) Planting of Trees: Green muffler scheme involves planting green trees and shrubs along roads, hospitals, educational institutions etc. to reduce noise to a considerable extent. Trees like Ashoka, Neem, Tamarind are good for this purpose. (6) White noise: It is a special type of sound signal which is used to mask background sounds. White noise helps to mask out sounds which might otherwise prevent one from either falling asleep or waking up whilst asleep.

46. (7) Legislative Measures: Strict legislative measures need to be enforced to curb the menace of noise pollution. Noise standards (Table) should be strictly followed. Minimum use of loudspeakers and amplifiers especially near silence zones. Banning pressure horns in automobiles. Even though, noise has been considered as pollutant under Air act and The noise pollution (regulation and control) rules (2000) have been framed under Environment protection act. But still people need to be educated about harmful effects of noise

47. The central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) committee has recommended permissible noise level for different locations. Area Code Category of Area Noise Level in dB. Day Night A Industrial 75 70 B Commercial 65 55 C Residential 55 45 D Silence Zone 50 40 Note: 1. Day time shall mean from 6.00 a.m. to 10.00 p.m. 2. Night time shall mean from 10.00 p.m. to 6.00 a.m. 3. Silence zone is defined as an area comprising not less than 100 meters around hospitals, educational institutions and courts

48. Prevention of Noise Pollution Some noise pollution preventive measures are provided in the points below. Honking in public places like teaching institutes, hospital, etc. should be banned. In commercial, hospital, and industrial buildings, adequate soundproof systems should be installed. Musical instruments sound should be controlled to desirable limits. Dense tree cover is useful in noise pollution prevention. Explosives should be not used in forest, mountainous and mining areas.

49. Thank you…