Electron beam accelerators are reliable and durable electrically-sourced equipment that produce ionizing radiation without relying upon radioactive isotopes. E-beam equipment can be turned on or off as any other industrial electrical equipment. E-beam units do not face the security, transportation and disposal issues that confront the use of long lived, gamma-ray emitting isotopes, such as cobalt-60, which are used in some industrial applications, mainly for medical device sterilization. High-current electron beam accelerators are used in diverse industries to enhance the physical and chemical properties of materials and to reduce undesirable contaminants, such as pathogens or toxic by-products.
With the advent of very high-current E-beam accelerators, conversion of electron beam power to X-rays is now a commercially viable alternative to the industrial use of gamma rays.
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