I found an old brush used to clean static off of camera lenses and stuff, and saw a warning label on it that said not to touch the Polonium strip on the inside and to replace after July 1992. I did a quick Google on it and found that this contains a serious amount of the radioactive metal, but that it should be incased in some kind of protective coating...however...why else would the warning label say to replace by 1992 than to warn me that it could get more dangerous with time?
Should I just toss it in the trash or is there some special way to dispose of it now that it's old?
quote from Wikipedia:
Potentially lethal amounts of polonium are present in anti-static brushes sold to photographers.
[54] Many of the devices are available by
mail order.
General Electric markets a
static eliminator module with 500 µCi (20 MBq), roughly 2.5 times the lethal dose of
210Po if 100%-ingested, for US$79;
[55] Staticmaster sells replacement units with the same amount (500 µCi) of
210Po for US$36.
[56] In USA, the devices with no more than 500 µCi of (sealed)
210Po per unit can be bought in any amount under a "general license"
[57] which means that a buyer need not be registered by any authorities: the general license "is effective without the filing of an application with the Commission or the issuance of a licensing document to a particular person."
If these sources were used to collect the amount of polonium likely used in the poisoning—and one could devise a method of separating the polonium from its protective casing—it would take 10–100 modules for price of US$360 to US$7,100. That such a thing could be done is extremely difficult according to the manufacturers
[citation needed] and would be highly dangerous to anyone attempting to do so without some special equipment like a
glovebox.
Potentially lethal amounts of polonium are present in anti-static brushes sold to photographers.
[54] Many of the devices are available by
mail order.
General Electric markets a
static eliminator module with 500 µCi (20 MBq), roughly 2.5 times the lethal dose of
210Po if 100%-ingested, for US$79;
[55] Staticmaster sells replacement units with the same amount (500 µCi) of
210Po for US$36.
[56] In USA, the devices with no more than 500 µCi of (sealed)
210Po per unit can be bought in any amount under a "general license"
[57] which means that a buyer need not be registered by any authorities: the general license "is effective without the filing of an application with the Commission or the issuance of a licensing document to a particular person."
If these sources were used to collect the amount of polonium likely used in the poisoning—and one could devise a method of separating the polonium from its protective casing—it would take 10–100 modules for price of US$360 to US$7,100. That such a thing could be done is extremely difficult according to the manufacturers
[citation needed] and would be highly dangerous to anyone attempting to do so without some special equipment like a
glovebox.
Source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polonium