Safety precautions — Explain

Explain the safety precautions used to reduce a person's exposure to ionising radiation.

Reducing exposure time: the shorter the time spent near a radioactive source, the smaller the dose of radiation received, so contact/handling time is kept to a minimum. Increasing distance: the intensity of radiation received falls rapidly as distance from the source increases, so tools such as tongs are used to increase the distance between the source and living tissue. Using shielding: placing absorbing material between the source and the body (e.g. lead or thick concrete for gamma radiation, aluminium for beta radiation) absorbs radiation before it can reach and damage living tissue.