The Hiroshima thermal-neutron discrepancy for (36)Cl at large distances. Part II: Natural in situ production as a source

Intercomparison study on (152)Eu gamma ray and (36)Cl AMS measurements for development of the new Hiroshima-Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Dosimetry System 2002 (DS02)

In the process of developing a new dosimetry system for atomic bomb survivors in Hiroshima and Nagasaki (DS02), an intercomparison study between (152)Eu and (36)Cl measurements was proposed, to reconcile the discrepancy previously observed in the Hiroshima data between measurements and calculations of thermal neutron activation products. Nine granite samples, exposed to the atomic-bomb radiation in Hiroshima within 1,200 m of the hypocenter, as well as mixed standard solutions containing known amounts of europium and chlorine that were neutron-activated by a (252)Cf source, were used for the intercomparison. Gamma-ray spectrometry for (152)Eu was carried out with ultra low-background Ge detectors at the Ogoya Underground Laboratory, Kanazawa University, while three laboratories participated in the (36)Cl measurement using accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS): The Technical University of Munich, Germany, the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, USA and the University of Tsukuba, Japan. Measured values for the mixed standard solutions showed good agreement among the participant laboratories. They also agreed well with activation calculations, using the neutron fluences monitored during the (252)Cf irradiation, and the corresponding activation cross-sections taken from the JENDL-3.3 library. The measured-to-calculated ratios obtained were 1.02 for (152)Eu and 0.91-1.02 for (36)Cl, respectively. Similarly, the results of the granite intercomparison indicated good agreement with the DS02 calculation for these samples. An average measured-to-calculated ratio of 0.98 was obtained for all granite intercomparison measurements. The so-called neutron discrepancy that was previously observed and that which included increasing measured-to-calculated ratios for thermal neutron activation products for increasing distances beyond 1,000 m from the hypocenter was not seen in the results of the intercomparison study. The previously claimed discrepancy could be explained by insufficient understanding of the measured data.

Transfer of Cl from herbage into tissues and milk products of dairy cattle and pigs

Cl-36 is an important component of nuclear waste. The concentrations of stable chlorine (Cl) in pig and cow tissues were measured to provide information which can be used to parameterize models of (36)Cl transfer into agricultural animals. The concentration of stable Cl in cows' milk was 1.0 +/- 0.2 g L(-1), in cow muscle it was 0.7 +/- 0.2 g kg(-1) wet mass (wm) and in pig muscle 0.4 +/- 0.1 g kg(-1) wm. The concentration of stable Cl in cow and pig liver was 0.9 +/- 0.3 g kg(-1) wm, which was about two-fold higher than that in the kidney and lung. Due to homeostatic control, stable Cl concentrations in animal tissues are not related to the amount ingested daily in herbage at intake rates in the normal physiological range of up to 188 g day(-1) for cows and up to 40 g day(-1) for pigs. Therefore, the commonly used transfer coefficient is not suitable for use in quantifying the transfer of (36)Cl to milk and meat. Since the metabolism of stable Cl and (36)Cl in an animal's body is identical, the average equilibrium ratios of (36)Cl to stable Cl in the daily ration ((36)Cl (g kg(-1))/Cl (g kg(-1))) and animal tissues will be the same. We therefore conclude that the average equilibrium Cl isotopic ratio in the dietary daily intake should be used to predict the contamination of meat and milk with (36)Cl.

Radioactivity in atomic-bomb samples from exposure to environmental neutrons

For about one decade, activation measurements performed on environmental samples from a distance larger than 1 km from the hypocenter of the atomic-bomb explosion over Hiroshima suggested much higher thermal neutron fluences to the survivors than predicted. This caused concern among the radiation protection community and prompted a complete re-evaluation of all aspects of survivor dosimetry. While it was shown recently that secondary neutrons from cosmic radiation and other sources have probably been the reason for the high measured concentrations of the long-lived radioisotope 36Cl in these samples, the source for high measured concentrations of the short-lived radionuclides 152Eu and 60Co has not yet been investigated in detail. In order to quantify the production of 152Eu and 60Co in environmental samples by secondary neutrons from cosmic radiation, thermal neutron fluxes were measured by means of a He gas proportional counter in various buildings where these samples had been and still are being stored. Because a 252Cf neutron source has been operated occasionally close to one of the sample storage rooms, additional neutron flux measurements were carried out when the neutron source was in operation. The thermal neutron fluxes measured ranged from 0.00017 to 0.00093 n cm(-2) s(-1) and depended on the floor number of the investigated building. Based on the measured neutron fluxes, the specific activities from the reactions 151Eu(n,gamma)152Eu and 59Co(n,gamma)60Co in the atomic-bomb samples were estimated to be 7.9 mBq g(-1) Eu and 0.27 mBq g(-1) Co, respectively, in saturation. These activities are much lower than those recently measured in samples that had been exposed to atomic-bomb neutrons. It is therefore concluded that environmental and moderated 252Cf neutrons are not the source for the high activities that had been measured in these samples.

The Hiroshima thermal-neutron discrepancy for (36)Cl at large distances. Part I: New (36)Cl measurements in granite samples exposed to A-bomb neutrons

The long-lived radioisotope (36)Cl (half-life: 301,000 years) was measured in granite samples exposed to A-bomb neutrons at distances from 94 to 1,591 m from the hypocenter in Hiroshima, by means of accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS). Measured (36)Cl/Cl ratios decrease from 1.6 x 10(-10) close to the hypocenter to about 1-2 x 10(-13), at a distance of 1,300 m from the hypocenter. At this distance and beyond the measured (36)Cl/Cl ratios do not change significantly and scatter around values of 1-2 x 10(-13). These findings suggest that the (36)Cl had been predominantly produced by thermalized neutrons from the A-bomb via neutron capture on stable (35)Cl, at distances from the hypocenter smaller than about 1,200 m. At larger distances, however, confounding processes induced by cosmic rays or neutrons from the decay of uranium and thorium become important. This hypothesis is theoretically and experimentally supported in a consecutive paper. The results are compared to calculations that are based on the most recent dosimetry system DS02. Close to the hypocenter, measured (36)Cl/Cl ratios are lower than those calculated, while they are significantly higher at large distances from the hypocenter. If the contribution of the cosmic rays and of the neutrons from the decay of uranium and thorium in the sample was subtracted, however, no significant deviation from the DS02 calculations was observed, at those distances. Thus, the Hiroshima neutron discrepancy reported in the literature for (36)Cl for samples from large distances from the hypocenter, i.e., higher measured (36)Cl/Cl ratios than predicted by the previous dosimetry system DS86, was not confirmed.