The Effect of Nuclear Radiation on Fibrous Materials

The dye adsorption characteristics of a series of cotton and rayon samples exposed for different periods of time to gamma rays and to thermal neutrons have been deter mined. For this work substantive dyes of known behavior toward degraded celluloses were used. The effect produced in the case of neutrons was twofold. At the early stages and again during the later stages of irradiation, the dye adsorption of the samples was increased: at intermediate exposures the adsorption was decreased. Because hy drolyzed cellulose behaves in the former manner and the acidic type of oxidized cellulose in the latter, the data suggest that neutrons have an effect similar to both hydrolysis and oxidation. Gamma rays (CO 60 ). however, gave only the effect of oxidation.