![]() Uranium glass also fluoresces bright green under ultraviolet light and can register above background radiation on a sufficiently sensitive Geiger counter, although most pieces of uranium glass are considered to be harmless and only negligibly radioactive. The normal color of uranium glass ranges from yellow to green depending on the oxidation state and concentration of the metal ions, although this may be altered by the addition of other elements as glass colorants. Otherwise, modern uranium glass is now mainly limited to small objects like beads or marbles as scientific or decorative novelties. Most such objects are now considered antiques or retro-era collectibles, although there has been a minor revival in art glassware. Uranium glass was once made into tableware and household items, but fell out of widespread use when the availability of uranium to most industries was sharply curtailed during the Cold War in the 1940s to 1990s. The proportion usually varies from trace levels to about 2% uranium by weight, although some 20th-century pieces were made with up to 25% uranium. Licensed under CC By 2.0.Uranium glass is glass which has had uranium, usually in oxide diuranate form, added to a glass mix before melting for coloration. “Schroedinger's Martini,” uranium glass and Geiger counter, photo by Lenore Edman. Larry Meyer, Gold Country Gems Your weird physicist friend might offer you some interesting beverages. The typically bright fluorescence of chalcedony in geodes is due to uranium salts. Uranium glass isn't the only material containing uranium that a gem cutter might encounter. Gemologists with well-equipped labs are also likely to have them. If you're uncomfortable with the material and the safety precautions, it would probably be best to keep your piece as a curio and not cut it.ĭonald Clark, CSM IMG Geiger Counters, Chalcedony Fluorescence, and Uranium Saltsīe advised that not just “weird physicist friends” are likely to have Geiger counters. When I put my “hot dish” under a longwave UV light, it lights up the whole room up with a “Gatorade” greenish yellow light. An interesting thing about this material is that it fluoresces under ultraviolet light. Sometimes uranium glass is sold as “Vaseline glass” because of its color and luster. However, the glass is rich in lead oxide as well, so precautions do need to be taken. I recently purchased a piece that doesn't even measure a millirem/hour per gram. However, much of the material sold lately has only a fraction of a percent uranium and measures only slightly above background. I collect the stuff and have a plate from the 1930s that is too hot (45 millirems/hr) to ship by the PO or UPS. The radioactivity and amount of uranium in uranium glass vary widely. If you plan on faceting anything radioactive, I recommend you follow these safety precautions. Sean Keane Vaseline Glass With a Gatorade Glow If you want to facet glass, there are many different varieties of glass and synthetic materials that are inexpensive and not radioactive. The simplest thing to do, of course, is turn in your specimen at the nearest household hazardous waste collection site and not take the chance. I wouldn't mess with anything that was more than a couple of times more active than background radiation levels. If you have a weird physicist friend who owns a Geiger counter or can get a local university to help, you can test your specimen to determine its radioactivity level. You can learn more about uranium glass here. It's actually not the uranium that makes the piece dangerous but other elements found in the uranium ore. In fact, some of the “hotter” specimens are dangerous to even have around, let alone facet. Most of this material is fairly innocuous, but some of it is quite radioactive. It would be a VERY BAD idea to cut uranium glass without knowing more about your piece. When present in glass, uranium imparts a yellow color and makes it very heavy. (From what I know about the glass that was formed during nuclear detonations, you wouldn't be able to find a gem-quality piece large enough to facet). I'm almost certain it's not glass from a nuclear test site. It's probably safe to handle normally, but faceting it might be another matter. Licensed under CC By-ND 2.0.Īnswer: From your description, it sounds like you have a piece of uranium glass. What precautions should I take in cutting it? Any worries with fine mists, dusts, or anything like that? Another friend told me it might be a piece of glass from a nuclear testing site! Any guidance would be appreciated. Question: A friend of mine was going through some old stuff in his attic and found something labelled “atomic glass.” Since it looked like a yellow gem, he gave it to me. Any ideas what it could be? It's heavy and seems to be leaded glass. ![]()
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