31. Americium -241 is an ?-emitter with a weak ?-ray byproduct.32. A fourth patient might have been injected with radioactive americium at UCSF, the report says. 33. Americium is used in smoke detectors, and several transuranic elements are used in nuclear medicine.34. Americium is a highly radioactive element.35. Divalent americium is obtained only in dry compounds and non-aqueous solutions ( acetonitrile ). 36. But it is possible to purify the plutonium bearing the americium by a chemical separation process. 37. The inherent safety of an ADS, however, would allow americium to be safely burned. 38. It is the americium isotope used in an americium smoke detector based on an ionization chamber. 39. It is the americium isotope used in an americium smoke detector based on an ionization chamber. 40. Americium -241 decays by alpha emission, with a by-product of gamma rays.
