Can an accident at a food irradiation facility lead to “Meltdown” of the irradiator and release of radioactivity that would contaminate the environment and endanger people living nearby ?
No. It is impossible for a melt down to occur in a gamma irradiator. A radiation facility can not explode as Cobalt-60 is not a fissionable material and no neutrons are produced unlike in a nuclear reactor. Also no environmental contamination due to leakage of radioactivity can occur because the radioisotope is doubly encapsulated in stainless steel tubes. No. It is impossible for a melt down to occur in a gamma irradiator. A radiation facility can not explode as Cobalt-60 is not a fissionable material and no neutrons are produced unlike in a nuclear reactor. Also no environmental contamination due to leakage of radioactivity can occur because the radioisotope is doubly encapsulated in stainless steel tubes.
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