Iodine-131

What is radioactive iodine?

Iodine (chemical symbol I) is a nonmetallic solid element. There are both radioactive and non-radioactive isotopes of iodine. Iodine-129 and -131 are the most important radioactive isotopes in the environment. Some isotopes of iodine, such as I-123 and I-124 are used in medical imaging and treatment, but are generally not a problem in the environment because they have very short half-lives.

Where do iodine-129 and iodine-131 come from?

Both iodine-129 and iodine-131 are produced by the fission of uranium atoms during operation of nuclear reactors and by plutonium (or uranium) in the detonation of nuclear weapons.

What are the properties of iodine-129 and iodine-131?

Radioactive iodines have the same physical properties as stable iodine. However, radioactive iodines decay with time

Iodine is a nonmetallic, purplish-black crystalline solid. It has the unusual property of ‘sublimation,' which means that it can go directly from a solid to a gas, without first becoming liquid. It sublimes to a deep violet vapor at room temperature. This vapor is irritating to the eyes, nose and throat. Iodine dissolves in alcohol and in water. It melts at 236 °F.

Iodine reacts easily with other chemicals, and isotopes of iodine are found as compounds rather than as a pure elemental nuclide. Thus, iodine-129 and -131 found in nuclear facilities and waste treatment plants quickly form compounds with the mixture of chemicals present. However, iodine released to the environment from nuclear power plants is usually a gas.

Iodine-129 has a half-life of 15.7 million years; iodine-131 has a half-life of about 8 days. Both emit beta particles upon radioactive decay.

How do iodine-129 and iodine-131 get into the environment?

Iodine-129 and iodine-131 are gaseous fission products that form within fuel rods as they fission. Unless reactor chemistry is carefully controlled, they can build up too fast, increasing pressure and causing corrosion in the rods. As the rods age, cracks or wholes may breach the rods.

Cracked rods can release radioactive iodine into the water that surrounds and cools the fuel rods. There, it circulates with the cooling water throughout the system, ending up in the airborne, liquid, and solid wastes from the reactor. From time to time, reactor gas capture systems release gases, including iodine, to the environment under applicable regulations.

Anywhere spent nuclear fuel is handled, there is a chance that iodine-129 and iodine-131 will escape into the environment. Nuclear fuel reprocessing plants dissolve the spent fuel rods in strong acids to recover plutonium and other valuable materials. In the process, they also release iodine-129 and -131 into the airborne, liquid, and solid waste processing systems. In the U.S., spent nuclear fuel is no longer reprocessed, because of concerns about nuclear weapons proliferation.

Currently, spent nuclear fuel remains in temporary storage at nuclear power plants around the country. If the nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain opens, it will provide permanent disposal for spent nuclear fuel and other high-level radioactive wastes. Wherever spent nuclear fuel is stored, the short-lived iodine-131 it contains will decay away quickly and completely. However, the long-lived iodine-129 will remain for millions of years. Keeping it from leaking into the environment, requires carefully designed, long-term safeguards.

The detonation of nuclear weapons also releases iodine-129 into the environment. Atmospheric testing in the 1950's and 60's released radioactive iodine to the atmosphere which has disseminated around the world, and is now found at very low levels in the environment. Most I-129 in the environment came from weapons testing.

How do iodine-129 and iodine-131 change in the environment?

Radioactive iodine can disperse rapidly in air and water, under the right conditions. However, it combines easily with organic materials in soil. This is known as ‘organic fixation' and slows iodine's movement in the environment. Some soil minerals also attach to, or adsorb, iodine, which also slows its movement.

The long half-life of iodine-129, 15.7 million years, means that it remains in the environment. However, iodine-131's short half-life of 8 days means that it will decay away completely in the environment in a matter of months. Both decay with the emission of a beta particle, accompanied by weak gamma radiation.

Iodine-131 is of great interest because it is produced in relatively large quantities by nuclear fission and has a half-life of only eight days.  This means any ¹³¹I that is detected would be from a recent release of fission products.

Back