Ask X3What does 49 CFR 172.403 (Class 7 (radioactive) material) require?
Generated guidance. Confirm the source and its applicability before you act. How we check sources.
As Ask X3, your fleet-compliance assistant, here is what 49 CFR 172.403 requires for Class 7 (radioactive) materials:
* Labeling Requirement: Unless excepted by §§ 173.421 through 173.427, every package of radioactive material must be labeled.
* Label Category: The correct label category (ranging from the lowest category, RADIOACTIVE WHITE-I, to the highest, RADIOACTIVE YELLOW-III) is based on the package's surface radiation level and its transport index (TI). You must apply the highest category required by either of those two conditions.
* Highway Route Controlled Quantity: Any package containing a "highway route controlled quantity" must be labeled as RADIOACTIVE YELLOW-III.
* Zero TI Rule: If the measured transport index is not greater than 0.05, you may treat the value as zero.
* Empty and Fissile Packages: EMPTY labels must follow § 173.428(e). FISSILE labels must include the assigned criticality safety index (CSI) from the appropriate package design approval or certificate. For overpacks or freight containers, the CSI must be the sum of all internal packages.
* Quantity and Placement: Each package that requires a RADIOACTIVE label must have two identical labels affixed to opposite sides of the package.
* Information on the Label: You must legibly print (manually or mechanically) the following durable, weather-resistant information in the blank spaces of the label:
1. Contents: The names of the radionuclides (except for LSA-I material, where "LSA-I" may be used).
2. Activity: The maximum activity in appropriate SI units (with optional customary units in parentheses). Weight in grams or kilograms may be used for certain fissile radionuclides.
3. Transport Index: As defined in § 173.403.
* Overpacks: When packages are placed inside an overpack, the overpack must also be labeled according to specific rules, such as using "mixed" for contents (if contents vary), summing up the activities, summing up the transport indices (or directly measuring for a rigid overpack), and using the overpack's label category to determine vehicle placarding.