Skill 18.3 Identifying everyday applications of spectroscopy

Radiotherapy uses radiation as part of cancer treatment to destroy tumors. Rapidly growing tumors are more vulnerable to radiation damage from p particles than non-malignant tissue. Radiotherapy works by damaging the DNA of these cells. The radioactive source may be outside the body (external radiotherapy) or introduced into the body. Isotopes used for internal radiotherapy may be injected into the body as a liquid or introduced temporarily through a catheter in a sealed container. 

Cobalt-60 was a common isotope for external radiotherapy, but it has mostly been replaced by linear accelerators that provide high-energy electrons (P particles) without a dangerous isotope source. It is still used for food irradiation. Iodine-131 is used to combat diseases of the thyroid and of several types of cancer. A list of isotopes used in nuclear medicine may be found at http //www.cbvcp.com/nmrc/mia.html. 

Archeology uses nuclear chemistry for radiometric dating. The most commonly used nuclide for this technique is Carbon-14. C-14 is mostly synthesized in the upper atmosphere where extraterrestrial radiation interacts with other molecules to produce neutrons used in the reaction  

Carbon-14 then decays by -emission with a half-life of 5730 years  

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