Output of radiopharmaceutical nuclides of known injected doses from a municipal sewage treatment system.
The concentrations of (99m)Tc, (123)I, (67)Ga, and (201)Tl of the discharge water and the sewage sludge from Kurume Central Sewage Treatment Plant were determined once a week for 2 mo. The radiopharmaceutical doses injected into the patients for all of four hospitals that use nuclear medicines in the service area of the plant were also surveyed. Approximately 1.5% of the (99m)Tc, 1.5% of the (123)I, 4.3% of the (67)Ga, and 0.41% of the (201)Tl of the injected doses were detected in the discharged water from the plant. The behavior of these radionuclides in the sewage treatment system was analyzed using a compartment model. The analyses suggest that the average residence times in storage tanks and drainage pipes before entering the plant were 9.5 h for (99m)Tc, 81 h for (123)I, 120 h for (67)Ga, and 480 h for (201)Tl.
Nakamura
Ayako
A
Department of Radiology, Kurume University School of Medicine, 67 Asahi-machi, Kurume, Fukuoka, 830-0011, Japan.
Hayabuchi
Naofumi
N
Osaki
Tomoe
T
Osaki
Susumu
S
D005710:Gallium Radioisotopes / Q000737:chemistry; D007457:Iodine Radioisotopes / Q000737:chemistry; D008506:Medical Waste; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals / Q000737:chemistry*; D012722:Sewage; D012984:Software; D013597:Systems Analysis; D013667:Technetium / Q000737:chemistry; D013794:Thallium Radioisotopes / Q000737:chemistry; D014865:Waste Disposal, Fluid
D005710:Gallium Radioisotopes; D007457:Iodine Radioisotopes; D008506:Medical Waste; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D012722:Sewage; D013794:Thallium Radioisotopes; D013667:Technetium