Editing Curium (section)

==Safety==
Due to its radioactivity, curium and its compounds must be handled in appropriate labs under special arrangements. While curium itself mostly emits α-particles which are absorbed by thin layers of common materials, some of its decay products emit significant fractions of beta and gamma rays, which require a more elaborate protection.<ref name="lenntech" /> If consumed, curium is excreted within a few days and only 0.05% is absorbed in the blood. From there, ~45% goes to the [[liver]], 45% to the bones, and the remaining 10% is excreted. In bone, curium accumulates on the inside of the interfaces to the [[bone marrow]] and does not significantly redistribute with time; its radiation destroys bone marrow and thus stops [[red blood cell]] creation. The [[biological half-life]] of curium is about 20 years in the liver and 50 years in the bones.<ref name="lenntech" /><ref name="LA2" /> Curium is absorbed in the body much more strongly via inhalation, and the allowed total dose of <sup>244</sup>Cm in soluble form is 0.3&nbsp;μ[[Curie (unit)|Ci]].<ref name="CRC" /> Intravenous injection of <sup>242</sup>Cm- and <sup>244</sup>Cm-containing solutions to rats increased the incidence of [[bone tumor]], and inhalation promoted [[lung]] and [[liver cancer]].<ref name="lenntech" />

Curium isotopes are inevitably present in spent nuclear fuel (about 20 g/tonne).<ref>Hoffmann, K. ''Kann man Gold machen? Gauner, Gaukler und Gelehrte. Aus der Geschichte der chemischen Elemente'' (Can you make gold? Crooks, clowns and scholars. From the history of the chemical elements), Urania-Verlag, Leipzig, Jena, Berlin 1979, no ISBN, p. 233</ref> The isotopes <sup>245</sup>Cm–<sup>248</sup>Cm have decay times of thousands of years and must be removed to neutralize the fuel for disposal.<ref>Baetslé, L. H. [http://www.ictp.trieste.it/~pub_off/lectures/lns012/Baetsle.pdf Application of Partitioning/Transmutation of Radioactive Materials in Radioactive Waste Management] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050426092418/http://www.ictp.trieste.it/~pub_off/lectures/lns012/Baetsle.pdf |date=2005-04-26 }}, Nuclear Research Centre of Belgium Sck/Cen, Mol, Belgium, September 2001.</ref> Such a procedure involves several steps, where curium is first separated and then converted by neutron bombardment in special reactors to short-lived nuclides. This procedure, [[nuclear transmutation]], while well documented for other elements, is still being developed for curium.<ref name="denecke" />