Tritiated water

Water in which one or both hydrogen atoms are replaced by radioactive tritium, commonly written HTO or T₂O. It behaves chemically much like ordinary water while emitting beta radiation as tritium decays.

Tritium: The radioactive hydrogen isotope with one proton and two neutrons. Tritium atoms replace ordinary hydrogen in HTO and T₂O.
Radiotracer: A radioactive substance used to track the movement of atoms or molecules through a system. Tritiated water traces water transport because it mixes with ordinary water.
Ordinary water: Water composed predominantly of hydrogen-1 and oxygen-16. It is the nonradioactive baseline against which tritiated water is compared.
Radiation dosimetry: The measurement and calculation of ionizing radiation absorbed by matter or living tissue. Dosimetry estimates the internal dose from tritiated water intake.
Beta decay: Radioactive decay in which a nucleus emits an electron or positron and changes its composition. Tritium in water decays by emitting a low-energy electron.
Water cycle: The continuous movement of water among the atmosphere, land, oceans, and living things. Environmental tritium measurements can reveal water’s age and movement through this cycle.
Heavy water: Water in which hydrogen atoms are replaced by deuterium, a stable hydrogen isotope. Heavy water is isotopically altered but does not contain radioactive tritium.
Biological half-life: The time required for a biological system to eliminate half of a substance it contains. It helps estimate how long tritiated water remains in the body.
Isotopologue: A molecular species that differs from another only in the isotopes of its atoms. HTO and T₂O are isotopologues of ordinary water.
Groundwater dating: Methods for estimating when groundwater entered an aquifer using measurable tracers. Tritium in water helps identify relatively recent groundwater recharge.

Linked from 3 pages

Semiheavy waterCompared with: It differs from HDO by involving radioactive tritium rather than stable deuterium.