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Question
A freshly prepared radioactive source of half-life 2 h emits radiation of intensity which is 64 times the permissible safe level. The minimum time after which it would be possible to work safely with this source is
Options
6 h
12 h
24 h
128 h.
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Solution
12 h
A freshly prepared radioactive source emits radiation of intensity that is 64 times the permissible level. This means that it is possible to work safely till 6 half-lives (as 26 = 64) of the radioactive source. Since the half-life of the source is 2h, the minimum time after which it would be possible to work safely with this source is 12 h.
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