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Home > Nuclear Materials > Medical, Industrial, and Academic Uses of
Nuclear Materials
Medical, Industrial, and Academic Uses of
Nuclear Materials
What We Regulate
NRC and the Agreement
States regulate the following activities associated with medical, industrial,
and academic uses of nuclear materials. The Agreement States administer about
75 percent of licensees while NRC administers the remainder of the licensees.
- Sealed Sources and
Devices
- NRC and the Agreement States perform safety evaluations of the ability
of sealed sources and devices to
safely contain radioactivity under the conditions of their possession
and use. These evaluations are summarized in registrations that NRC
maintains in the National Sealed Source and Device Registry.
- Product Manufacturing and
Distribution - issuance of licenses authorizing commercial distribution
of products containing radioactive materials to other licensees and members
of the public.
- Medical Uses - use of nuclear
materials to monitor, image, or treat metabolic processes or tissues
in humans.
- Veterinary Uses - use of nuclear
materials to treat animals
- Industrial Uses - the use
of nuclear materials in industrial devices such as, irradiators, gauging
devices, well-logging devices, and industrial radiography systems.
- Academic and Research Uses
- use of nuclear materials in universities, colleges, and other academic
institutions for course work, laboratory demonstrations, and research.
- General License Uses -
commercial use of nuclear materials by general licensees for activities
such as measuring, gauging, or controlling devices, etc.
- Exempt Consumer Product
Uses - products containing radioactive materials whose use is exempt
from regulation and that are available in the marketplace to the public.
How We Regulate
NRC regulates medical, industrial, and academic uses of nuclear materials
through a combination of regulatory requirements; licensing; safety oversight,
including inspection and enforcement; operational experience evaluation; and
regulatory support activities. For information on the first three components
that applies generally to medical, industrial, and academic uses, see:
See the How We Regulate page for
general information on these activities. Specific information is provided
in the licensee toolkits for
each regulated activity.
Related Information
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