CHAPTER ONE: BACKGROUND OF STUDY
- INTRODUCTION
Energy emitted from a source is generally referred to as radiation. Examples include heat or light from the sun, microwaves from an oven, X-rays from an x-ray tube and gamma rays from radioactive elements. Here we are concerned with only one type of radiation “ionizing radiation” which occurs in two forms – waves or particles.
Ionizing radiation consists of particles and photons that have sufficient energy to ionize atoms in the human body, thus inducing chemical changes that may be biologically important for the functioning of cells.
The greatest exposure to ionizing radiation is from natural sources. Humans have always been exposed to ionizing radiation, since natural sources existed on earth even before life emerged. Until the end of the 19th century human beings were exposed only to natural radiation. The discovery of X-rays by Wilhelm Rontgen in 1895 and of radioactivity by Henri Becquerel in 1896 led to the development of many applications of ionizing radiation and to the introduction of man-made radiation.
Light is defined as the electromagnetic radiation with wavelength between 380 and 750nm and which is visible to the human eye which is visible to the human eye. Electromagnetic radiation such as light, is generated by changes in movement (vibration) of electrically charged particles, such as parts of heated molecules or electrons in atoms (both processes play a role in the glowing filament of incandescent lamps whereas the latter occurs in fluorescent lamps.
A light bulb is a device that produces light from electricity. In addition to lightning or dark space, they can be used to show an electronic device on, to direct traffic, for heat and many other purposes.
1.1 AIM AND OBJECTIVES
The aim of this work is to measure the level of radiation emission from common electric light sources. And it could also help in measuring the level of ionizing radiation emitted from the types of light bulbs used in order to determine the bulb that falls within the radiation limit.
1.2 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
The measured ionizing radiation will help determine the safest type of electric light bulb suitable for human health.
- LIMITATION OR SCOPE OF STUDY
The main limitation hindering the smooth execution of this research is funds, lack of recent journals, publication and materials both online and in visited libraries.
This research is limited to different types of electric light bulb available in Uyo City, Akwa Ibom State.
CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW
2.0 DEFINITION OF IONIZING RADIATION AND LIGHT BULB
Ionizing radiation is radiation that carries sufficient energy to the 30 electrons from atoms or molecules thereby ionizing them. Ionizing radiation is made up of energetic sub-atomic particles, ions or atoms moving at high speeds (usually greater than 1% of the speed of light) and electromagnetic waves on the high-energy end of the electromagnetic spectrum.
Another term for a charged particle is ions. The charges on the atomic particles make ionizing radiation unstable and reactive. The particles are great because they are trying to stabilize themselves. Ionizing radiation is a high-energy type of radiation because it comes from the high-energy end of the electromagnetic spectrum.
The creation of ionizing radiation is a natural process in the universe.
Ionizing radiation comes from these main sources:
- Nuclear reactions in the earth’s sun and stars in space.
- Really active decay in the body’s tissues and in the soil.
- Radioactive decay of unstable element in rocks, especially rocks that contain radium and release radon gas.
- Occupational sources from mining medical research and industrial jobs.
Types of ionizing radiation include;
- X-rays/gamma rays
- Alpha particles
- Beta particles