Use of uranium isotopes as a temporal and spatial tracer of nuclear contamination in the environment

Journal of Environmental Radioactivity

Volumn 124, Issue , 2013, Pages 287-300

  Tortorello, R ^a   Widom, E ^a   Renwick, W H ^a  

^a MIAMI UNIVERSITY   (United States)

Author keywords

Fernald; Isotope; Lichen; Ohio; Sediment; Uranium

Indexed keywords

CONTAMINATION EVENTS; DEPLETED URANIUM; ELEMENTAL CONCENTRATIONS; FERNALD; LICHEN; NUCLEAR CONTAMINATION; OHIO; TEMPORAL AND SPATIAL;

CONTAMINATION; FUNGI; ISOTOPES; NUCLEAR FUELS; SEDIMENTS;

URANIUM;

CESIUM 137; THORIUM; TRACER; URANIUM; URANIUM 235; URANIUM 238;

ANTHROPOGENIC EFFECT; BIOINDICATOR; CONCENTRATION (COMPOSITION); DUST; ISOTOPIC RATIO; LICHEN; POLLUTION EFFECT; RADIOACTIVE POLLUTION; SEDIMENT CORE; SPATIOTEMPORAL ANALYSIS; URANIUM ISOTOPE;

ARTICLE; RADIOACTIVE CONTAMINATION; SEDIMENT; X RAY DIFFRACTION;

FERNALD; ISOTOPE; LICHEN; OHIO; SEDIMENT; URANIUM;

GEOLOGIC SEDIMENTS; LICHENS; OHIO; RADIATION MONITORING; RADIOACTIVE POLLUTANTS; URANIUM;

FERNALD; OHIO; UNITED STATES;

EID: 84880603860     PISSN: 0265931X     EISSN: 18791700     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvrad.2013.06.007     Document Type: Article

References (68)

1. Adams J.A., Weaver C.E. Thorium-to-uranium ratios as indicators of sedimentary processes: example of concept of geochemical facies. AAPG Bull. 1958, 42:387-430.
2. Arnason J.G., Fletcher B.A. A40+ year record of Cd, Hg, Pb, and U deposition in sediments of Patroon Reservoir, Albany County, NY, USA. Environ. Pollut. 2003, 123:383-391.
3. Beckett P.J., Boileau L.J.R., Padovan D., Richardson D.H.S. Lichens and mosses as monitors of industrial activity associated with uranium mining in northern Ontario, Canada -Part 2: distance dependent uranium and lead accumulation patterns. Environ. Pollut. 1982, 4:91-107.
4. Bellis D., Ma R., Bramall N., McLeod C.W., Chapman N., Satake K. Airborne uranium contamination-as revealed through elemental and isotopic analysis of tree bark. Environ. Pollut. 2001, 114:383-387.
5. 238U in tree bark. J.Environ. Monit. 2001, 3:198-201.
6. Bertsch P.M., Hunter D.B., Sutton S.R., Bajt S., Rivers M.L. In situ chemical speciation of uranium in soils and sediments by micro x-ray absorption spectroscopy. Environ. Sci. Technol. 1994, 28:980-984.
7. Bonniwell E.C., Matisoff G., Whiting P.J. Determining the times and distances of particle transit in a mountain stream using fallout radionuclides. Geomorphology 1999, 27:75-92.
8. Boulyga S.F., Matusevich J.L., Mironov V.P., Kudrjashov V.P., Halicz L., Segal I., McLean J.A., Montaser A., Becker J.S. Determination of U-236/U-238 isotope ratios in contaminated environmental samples using different ICP-MS instruments. J.Anal. At. Spectrom. 2002, 17:958-964.
9. Boulyga S.F., Heumann K.G. Determination of extremely low U-236/U-238 isotope ratios in environmental samples by sector-field inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry using high-efficiency sample introduction. J.Environ. Radioact. 2006, 88:1-10.
10. Catalano J.G., Brown G.E. Uranyl adsorption onto montmorillonite: evaluation of binding sites and carbonate complexation. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 2005, 69:2995-3005.
11. Di Lella L.A., Frati L., Loppi S., Giuseppe P., Riccobono F. Lichens as biomonitors of uranium and other trace elements in an area of Kosovo heavily shelled with depleted uranium rounds. Atmos. Environ. 2003, 37:5445-5449.
12. Duval J.S. Aerial Radiometric Contour Maps of Ohio 1985, U.S. Geological Survey Map GP-968, three sheets, scale 1:500,000.
13. Environment, Safety, and Health Feed Materials Production Center 1990, Environmental Monitoring Annual Report for 1990, Department of Energy, Washington D.C.
14. Fahselt D., Wu T.W., Mott B. Trace element patterns in lichens following uranium mine closures. Bryologist 1995, 98:228-234.
15. Fernald Environmental Management Project. Historical Documentation of Facilities and Structures at Fernald Site 1998, FEMP, FEMP-20900-RP-0002. Fernald Environmental Management Project (U.S.), (1998) Print.
16. Fernald Environmental Management Project 1998, FEMP, Introduction to Fernald: Fernald Environmental Management Project (Fernald, Ohio). FEMP 20900-RP-0001 rev. 0. Fernald Environmental Management Project (U.S.), (1998) Print.
17. Firestone R.B., Baglin C.M., Frank Chu S.Y. Tableof Isotopes 1999, vol. 4. Wiley. eighth ed.
18. Fleischer R.L. Difficulties in using 234U/238U ratios to detect enriched or depleted uranium. Health Phys. 2008, 94:292-293.
19. Forsberg C.W., Hopper C.M., Richter J.L., Vantine H.C. Definition of Weapons-usable Uranium-233 1998, U.S. Department of Energy, ORNL/TM-13517.
20. 238U isotopic ratio by Lichen - bio-indicator technique. J.Environ. Radioact. 2005, 84:333-342.
21. Gough L.P., Erdman J.A. Influence of a coal-fired powerplant on element content of parmelia-chlorochroa. Bryologist 1977, 80:492-501.
22. Hembree D.M., Carter J.A., Ross H.H. Environmental Monitoring for Detection of Uranium Enrichment Operations: Comparison of LEU and HEU Facilities 1995, 1-75. National Security Program Office.
23. Hotchkis M.A.C., Child D., Fink D., Jacobsen G.E., Lee P.J., Mino N., Smith A.M., Tuniz C. Measurement of U-236 in environmental media. Nucl. Instruments Methods Phys. Res. B 2000, 172:659-665.
24. Hsi C.-K., Langmuir D. Adsorption of uranyl onto ferric oxyhydroxides: application of the surface complexation site-binding model. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 1985, 49:1931-1941.
25. Jeran Z., Bryne A.R., Batic F. Transplanted epiphytic lichens as biomonitors of air-contamination by natural radionuclides around the Zirovki Vrh uranium mine, Slovenia. Lichenologist 1995, 27:375-385.
26. Ketterer M.E., Wetzel W.C., Layman R.R., Matisoff G., Bonniwell E.C. Isotopic studies of sources of uranium in sediments of the Ashtabula River, Ohio, USA. Environ. Sci. Technol. 2000, 34:966-972.
27. 236U from atmospheric nuclear testing in Washington State (USA) and the Pechora region (Russian Arctic). J.Environ. Radioact 2013, 118:143-149.
28. Kigoshi K. Alpha-recoil thorium-234: dissolution into water and the uranium-234/uranium-238 disequilibrium in nature. Science 1971, 173:47-48.
29. Kikawada Y., Oda K., Nomura M., Honda T., Oi T., Hirose K., Igarashi Y. Origin of enriched uranium contained in Japanese atmospheric deposits. Nat. Sci. 2012, 4:936-942.
30. Killough G.G., Rope S.K., Shleien B., Voilleque P.G. Nonlinear estimation of weathering rate parameters for uranium in surface soil near a nuclear facility. J.Environ. Radioact 1999, 45:95-118.
31. Lee S.Y., Marsh J.D. Characterization of Uranium Contamination Soils from DOE Fernald Environmental Management Project Site: Results of Phase I Characterization 1992, Oak Ridge National Laboratory v-57.
32. Lloyd N.S., Chenery S.R.N., Parrish R.R. The distribution of depleted uranium contamination in Colonie, NY, USA. Sci. Total Environ. 2009, 408:397-407.
33. Ma R., Bellis D., McLeod C.W. Isotopic analysis of uranium in tree bark by ICP mass spectrometry: a strategy for assessment of airborne contamination. Anal. Chem. 2000, 72:4878-4881.
34. Mabit L., Benmansour M., Walling E.D. Comparative advantages and limitations of the fallout radionuclides (137)Cs, (210)Pb(ex) and (7)Be for assessing soil erosion and sedimentation. J.Environ. Radioact 2008, 99:1799-1807.
35. Magnoni M., Bertino S., Bellotto B., Campi M. Variations of the isotopic ratios of uranium in environmental samples containing traces of depleted uranium: theoretical and experimental aspects. Radiat. Prot. Dosim. 2001, 97:337-340.
36. Makhijani A. Radioactivity in the Fernald Neighborhood 2000, Institute for Energy and Environmental Research, SDA 5.
37. 239,240Pu) radionuclides. Advances in Isotope Geochemistry 2011, 487-519. Springer-Verlag, Ch 25. M. Baskaran (Ed.).
38. 238U ratios from alpha spectrometry as qualitative indicators of enriched uranium contamination. Health Phys. 2007, 92:488-495.
39. 131I deposition in Belarus as a result of the Chernobyl accident. J.Environ. Radioact. 2002, 59:293-307.
40. Morris D.E., Allen P.G., Berg J.M., Chisholm-Brause C.J., Conadson S.D., Donohoe R.J., Hess N.J., Musgrave J.A., Tait C.D. Speciation of uranium in Fernald soils by molecular spectroscopic methods: characterization of untreated soils. Environ. Sci. Technol. 1996, 30:2322-2331.
41. Nash T.H., Egan R.S. The biology of lichens and bryophytes. Lichens, Bryophytes and Air Quality 1988, 11-22. E-Publishing Bibliotheca Lichenologica, Belin. T.H. Nash III, V. Wirth (Eds.).
42. Nash, III T.H. Nutrients, elemental accumulation and mineral cycling. Lichen Biology 1996, 136-153. E-publishing Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. T.H. Nash III, V. Wirth (Eds.).
43. Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (Ohio EPA) Environment, Safety, and Health. Feed Materials Production Center 2009, Environmental Monitoring Annual Report for 1990, Department of Energy, Washington D.C.
44. Oliver I.W., Graham M.C., MacKenzie A.B., Ellam R.M., Farmer J.G. Assessing depleted uranium (DU) contamination of soil, plants and earthworms at UK weapons testing sites. J.Environ. Monit. 2007, 9:740-748.
45. Osmond J.K., Cowart J.B. The theory of uses of natural uranium isotopic variations in hydrology. At. Energy Rev. 1976, 14:621-679.
46. Perkins R.W., Thomas C.W. Worldwide fallout. Transuranic elements in the environment, 53-82. USDOE/TIC-22800 1980, US DOE, Washington, DC. W.C. Hanson (Ed.).
47. Pourcelot L., Boulet B., Le Corre C., Loyen J., Fayolle C., Tournieux D., Van Hecke W., Martinez B., Petit J. Isotopic evidence of natural uranium andspent fuel uranium releases into the environment. J.Environ. Monit. 2011, 13:355-361.
48. 236U in the general environment and near a shutdown nuclear power plant. Appl. Radiat. Isotope. 2009, 67:1775-1780.
49. Renwick W.H., Carlson K., Hayes-Bohanan J. Trends in recent reservoir sedimentation rates in southwestern Ohio. J.Soil Water Conservation 2005, 60:72-79.
50. Richter S., Alonso A., De Bolle W., Wellum R., Taylor P.D.P. Isotopic "fingerprints" for natural uranium ore samples. Int. J. Mass Spectrom. 1999, 193:9-14.
51. Roof S., Werner A. Indirect growth curves remain the best choice for lichenometry: evidence from directly measured growth rates from Svalbard. Arctic, Antarctic, Alpine Res. 2011, 43:621-631.
52. Rosamilia S., Gaudino S., Sansone U., Belli M., Jeran Z., Ruisi S., Zucconi L. Uranium isotopes, metals and other elements in lichens and tree barks collected in Bosnia-Herzegovina. J.Atmos. Chem. 2004, 49:447-460.
53. Rudnick, R.L., Gao, S., 2003. Composition of the Continental Crust, pp. 1-64. Rudnick, R.L. (Ed.), The Crust, vol. 3. In: Holland, H.D., Turekian, K.K. (Eds.), Treatise on Geochemistry, Elsevier, Pergamon, Oxford.
54. 236U levels in global fallout. Sci. Total Environ. 2009, 407:4238-4242.
55. Sansone U., Danesi P.R., Barbizzi S., Belli M., Campbell M., Gaudino S., Jia G.G., Ocone R., Pati A., Rosamilia S., Stellato L. Radioecological survey at selected sites hit by depleted uranium ammunitions during the 1999 Kosovo conflict. Sci. Total Environ. 2001, 281:23-35.
56. Seaman J.C., Meehan T., Bertsch P.M. Immobilization of ceasium-137 and uranium in contaminated sediments using soil amendments. J.Environ. Qual. 2001, 30:1206-1213.
57. Schleien B., Rope S.K., Case M.J., Killough G.G., Meyer K.R., Moore R.E., Schmidt D.W., Till J.E., Voillequé P.G. The Fernald Dosimetry Reconstruction Project Task 5: Review of Historic Data and Assessments for the FMCP 1995, RAC Report No. CDC-4, March 1995, Radiological Assessments Corp.
58. 238U in soil samples in La Palma, Canary Islands. J.Environ. Radioact 2011, 102:614-619.
59. Stubbs J.E., Veblen L.A., Elbert D.C., Zachara J.M., Davis J.A., Veblen D.R. Newly recognized hosts for uranium in the Hanford Site vadose zone. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 2009, 73:1563-1576.
60. Szabo B.J., Malde H.E., Irwin-Williams C. Dilemma posed by uranium-series dates on archaeologically significant bones from Valsequillo, Puebla, Mexico. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 1969, 6:237-244.
61. Taylor S.E., McLennan S.M. The continental crust: its composition and evolution 1985, Blackwell, Oxford.
62. Thakur P., Ballard S., Nelson R. An overview of Fukushima radionuclides measured in the northern hemisphere. Sci. Total Environ. 2013, 458-460:577-613.
63. Um W., Icenhower J.P., Brown C.F., Serne R.J., Wang Z., Dodge C.J., Francis A.J. Characterization of uranium-contaminated sediments from beneath a nuclear waste storage tank from Hanford, Washington: implications for contaminant transport and fate. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 2010, 74:1363-1380.
64. Warneke T., Croudace I.W., Warwick P.E., Taylor R.N. Anew ground-level fallout record of uranium and plutonium isotopes for northern temperate latitudes. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 2002, 203:1047-1057.
65. Wetherbee G.A., Gay D.A., Debey T.M., Lehmann M.B., Nilles M.A. Wet deposition of fission-product isotopes to North America from the Fukushima Dai-ichi incident, March 2011. Environ. Sci. Technol. 2012, 46:2574-2582.
66. Widom E., Kuentz D.C. Tracing Sources of Uranium Contamination Using Minor Isotopes 2010, Goldschmidt Abstract.
67. Wu Y.H., Liu E., Bing H.J., Yang X.D., Xue B., Xia W.L. Geochronology of recent lake sediments from Longgan Lake, middle reach of the Yangtze River, influenced by disturbance of human activities. Sci. China, Earth Sci. 2010, 53:1188-1194.
68. Young L.B., Harvey H.H. The relative importance of manganese and iron oxides and organic matter in the sorption of trace metals by surficial lake sediments. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 1992, 56:1175-1186.