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Zheltonozhskaya MV, Zheltonozhsky VA, Vlasova IE, Kuzmenkova NV, Kalmykov SN. The plutonium isotopes and strontium-90 determination in hot particles by characteristic X-rays. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RADIOACTIVITY 2020; 225:106448. [PMID: 33075716 DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvrad.2020.106448] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2020] [Revised: 09/16/2020] [Accepted: 10/12/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
This paper reports the developed non-destructive methods for the plutonium isotopes and strontium-90 content determination in hot particles and other samples. The proposed methods are based on the measurement of the characteristic X-rays accompanying the decay of these radionuclides. For hot particles of NPP accident origin, the proposed method's error limits are 10-15% for hot particles (samples) with activity above 100 Bq and 15-20% for hot particles (samples) with activity less than 100 Bq. For explosive particles, the determination accuracy is 10-15% for activity more than 5 Bq and 20-30% for 0.1-5 Bq activity. The accuracy of the proposed method for determining 90Sr in samples with its specific content of more than 104 Bq/sample is 5%, with ~102 Bq/sample its content is 15-20%. The cost of one sample measurement and the processing time of these methods are significantly reduced compared to traditional studies. The proposed methods are reasonably simple measurement methods and can be carried out even in the field condition. They open up new possibilities for the quick search and study of hot particles and environmental samples.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - I E Vlasova
- Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russian Federation
| | | | - S N Kalmykov
- Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russian Federation
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Saito H, Sutton M, Zhao P, Lee SD, Magnuson M. Review of technologies for preventing secondary transport of soluble and particulate radiological contamination from roadways, roadside vegetation, and adjacent soils. ENVIRONMENTAL ADVANCES 2020; 1:1-13. [PMID: 37229463 PMCID: PMC10208302 DOI: 10.1016/j.envadv.2020.100003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
Transport of contaminants from roadways to the environment is well known, although studies of technologies for preventing and managing this appear infrequently in the literature. This paper reviews technologies studied for radiological contaminants. In addition to nuclear facility decommissioning, nuclear power plant accidents at Chernobyl (Former Soviet Union), Fukushima (Japan) and elsewhere have provided real world situations to both develop and test technologies to remediate radiological contamination and to return roadways, along with adjacent vegetation and soil, to prior use. From publications arising from these efforts, technologies were reviewed for radioactive material with two distinct properties (water-soluble and insoluble radioactive contaminants). The reported characteristics and capabilities of technologies are summarized in this review. This review also presents logistical considerations of implementation of the technologies, including waste management which can be an extreme impediment to rapid remediation if generated quantities of hazardous waste exceed local handling capacity. The summarized literature review suggests future avenues of work, chiefly for insoluble particulates, focused on technologies which may be mechanistically applicable to their remediation. While the underlying chemical and physical mechanisms that contribute to transport differ among contaminants, the studies reviewed here might also be applicable to non-radioactive contaminants, because the presence of radioactivity is largely independent of the underlying mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hiroshi Saito
- Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, P.O. Box 808, Livermore, CA 94551, United States
| | - Mark Sutton
- Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, P.O. Box 808, Livermore, CA 94551, United States
| | - Pihong Zhao
- Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, P.O. Box 808, Livermore, CA 94551, United States
| | - Sang Don Lee
- US Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Cincinnati, OH 45268, United States
| | - Matthew Magnuson
- US Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Cincinnati, OH 45268, United States
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Salbu B, Lind OC. Analytical techniques for charactering radioactive particles deposited in the environment. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RADIOACTIVITY 2020; 211:106078. [PMID: 31677430 DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvrad.2019.106078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2019] [Revised: 10/13/2019] [Accepted: 10/13/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Since 1945, a series of nuclear and radiological sources have contributed to the release of radioactive particles containing refractory elements into the environment. Several years of research have demonstrated that the particle composition will depend on the source, while the release scenarios will influence particle properties of relevance for environmental transfer. Radioactive particles can also carry sufficient amount of radioactivity (MBq) and represent point sources of radiological concern. Most radiological assessment models, however, are based on bulk concentrations, assuming that radionuclides in the environment are evenly distributed. In contrast, radioactive particles and thereby doses are unevenly distributed, while leaching of radionuclides from particles prior to measurements can be partial, potentially leading to underestimation of inventories. For areas affected by particle contamination, information on particle characteristics controlling the particle weathering rates and remobilization of particle associated radionuclides will therefore be essential to reduce the overall uncertainties of the impact assessments. The present paper will focus on analytical strategies, from screening techniques applicable for identifying hot spots in the field, fractionation techniques and single particle extraction techniques as a preparatory mean to apply non-destructive solid state speciation techniques, till leaching techniques applied sequentially to obtain information on binding mechanisms, mobility and potential bioavailability. Thus, a combination of techniques should be utilized to characterize radioactive particles in order to improve environmental assessments for areas affected by radioactive particle fallout.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brit Salbu
- CERAD CoE, Faculty of Environmental Sciences and nature Resource Management, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, 1432, Aas, Norway
| | - Ole Christian Lind
- CERAD CoE, Faculty of Environmental Sciences and nature Resource Management, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, 1432, Aas, Norway.
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Tamasi AL, Cash LJ, Eley C, Porter RB, Pugmire DL, Ross AR, Ruggiero CE, Tandon L, Wagner GL, Walensky JR, Wall AD, Wilkerson MP. A lexicon for consistent description of material images for nuclear forensics. J Radioanal Nucl Chem 2015. [DOI: 10.1007/s10967-015-4455-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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7
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Batuk ON, Conradson SD, Aleksandrova ON, Boukhalfa H, Burakov BE, Clark DL, Czerwinski KR, Felmy AR, Lezama-Pacheco JS, Kalmykov SN, Moore DA, Myasoedov BF, Reed DT, Reilly DD, Roback RC, Vlasova IE, Webb SM, Wilkerson MP. Multiscale Speciation of U and Pu at Chernobyl, Hanford, Los Alamos, McGuire AFB, Mayak, and Rocky Flats. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2015; 49:6474-6484. [PMID: 25815708 DOI: 10.1021/es506145b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
The speciation of U and Pu in soil and concrete from Rocky Flats and in particles from soils from Chernobyl, Hanford, Los Alamos, and McGuire Air Force Base and bottom sediments from Mayak was determined by a combination of X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) spectroscopy and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) element maps. These experiments identify four types of speciation that sometimes may and other times do not exhibit an association with the source terms and histories of these samples: relatively well ordered PuO2+x and UO2+x that had equilibrated with O2 and H2O under both ambient conditions and in fires or explosions; instances of small, isolated particles of U as UO2+x, U3O8, and U(VI) species coexisting in close proximity after decades in the environment; alteration phases of uranyl with other elements including ones that would not have come from soils; and mononuclear Pu-O species and novel PuO2+x-type compounds incorporating additional elements that may have occurred because the Pu was exposed to extreme chemical conditions such as acidic solutions released directly into soil or concrete. Our results therefore directly demonstrate instances of novel complexity in the Å and μm-scale chemical speciation and reactivity of U and Pu in their initial formation and after environmental exposure as well as occasions of unexpected behavior in the reaction pathways over short geological but significant sociological times. They also show that incorporating the actual disposal and site conditions and resultant novel materials such as those reported here may be necessary to develop the most accurate predictive models for Pu and U in the environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olga N Batuk
- ‡Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico 87545, United States
| | - Steven D Conradson
- †Synchrotron-SOLEIL, L'Orme des Merisiers, Saint-Aubin - BP48, 91192, France
- ‡Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico 87545, United States
| | | | - Hakim Boukhalfa
- ‡Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico 87545, United States
| | - Boris E Burakov
- ∥V.G. Khlopin Radium Institute, 28, 2-nd Murinskiy Ave., St. Petersburg 194021, Russia
| | - David L Clark
- ‡Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico 87545, United States
| | - Ken R Czerwinski
- ⊥University of Nevada, MSM 245, 4505 S. Maryland Pkwy, Las Vegas, Nevada 89154, United States
| | - Andrew R Felmy
- #Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, PO Box 999 MSIN: K8-96, Richland, Washington 99352, United States
| | - Juan S Lezama-Pacheco
- ∇Environmental Earth System Sciences Department, 473 Via Ortega, Stanford University, Stanford California 94305-4216, United States
| | - Stepan N Kalmykov
- ○Radiochemistry Division, Chemistry Department, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Leninskie Gory, Moscow 119991, Russia
- ◆Frumkin Institute of Physical Chemistry and Electrochemistry of RAS, Leninsky av. 31, Moscow 119071, Russia
| | - Dean A Moore
- #Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, PO Box 999 MSIN: K8-96, Richland, Washington 99352, United States
| | - Boris F Myasoedov
- ◆Frumkin Institute of Physical Chemistry and Electrochemistry of RAS, Leninsky av. 31, Moscow 119071, Russia
| | - Donald T Reed
- ‡Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico 87545, United States
| | - Dallas D Reilly
- #Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, PO Box 999 MSIN: K8-96, Richland, Washington 99352, United States
| | - Robert C Roback
- ‡Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico 87545, United States
| | - Irina E Vlasova
- ○Radiochemistry Division, Chemistry Department, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Leninskie Gory, Moscow 119991, Russia
| | - Samuel M Webb
- ¶SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, California 94025, United States
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