What is legally defensible and scientifically most accurate approach for estimating the intake of radionuclides in workers?

This paper describes the merits and demerits of each technique utilized for determining the intakes of radioactive materials in workers with particular emphasis on the intake of thorium, uranium, and plutonium. Air monitoring at work places have certain flaws, which may give erroneous estimates of intake of the radionuclides. Bioassay techniques involve radiochemical determinations of radionuclides in biological samples such as urine, feces etc, and employing biokinetic models to estimate the intake from such measurements. Though, highly sensitive and accurate procedures are available for the determination of these radionuclides biokinetic models employed produce large errors in the estimate. In vivo measurements have fundamental problems of poor sensitivities. Also, due to non-availability of such facilities at most of the nuclear sites transporting workers at different facilities may cost a lot of financial resources. It seems difficult to defend in the court of law that determination of intake of radioactive material in workers by an individual procedure is accurate; at the best these techniques may be employed to obtain only an estimate of intake.     

Clearance of Radioactivity Deposited in the Respiratory Tract to Blood: Progress in a Multinational Interspecies Comparison Project

Due to the diversity of the chemical forms of radionuclides inhaled in industry and the environment, the assessment of intake and dose is based frequently on biokinetic studies of the materials in laboratory animals. The ICRP respiratory tract and systemic models provide an effective framework for extrapolating the results of such studies to humans, but there is a paucity of data concerning the crucial assumption that the absorption rates from lungs into blood for a given material are independent of the mammalian species. To address this uncertainty, biokinetic studies involving five chemical compounds and four mammalian species are being conducted. The compounds, with the species in parenthesis, are Pu-nitrate (man, primate, rat), Gd-oxide (man, primate, dog, rat), Np- oxide and nitrate (primate, rat), and U-octoxide (primate, dog, rat). This paper describes progress to date.     

Using animal dosimetry models to interpret human bioassay data for actinide exposures

Bioassay and dosometry models are needed to estimate intakes of radionuclides, and to calculate radiation doses to target tissues following such in takes. Because of the diversity of exposure materials, individual biological variabilities, and the general lack of adequate bioassay information and knowledge of the metabolism of radionuclides, current models are based mostly on empiricism. This paper describes biokinetic/dosimetry models for U, Am, and Cm. They are based on experimental data developed from studies in dogs that inhaled one of the above radionuclides in specific chemical forms and specific particle sizes. The models, which are based on similar biological principles, and, therefore, have similar structure, are applied to the very sparse human bioassay data available from cases of exposure to either U, Am, or Cm. The results thus far indicate that the lung retention for the different actinides are well described by the models, that urinary bioassay data can be described within limited time periods, and that the fecal excretion rate is not adequately described. Improvements in modeling are predicted on increased publication of human bioassay data, and better cooperative interaction between model developers and health protection professionals responsible for industrial bioassay programs.     

A comparison of239+240Pu post-mortem measurements with estimates based on current ICRP models

Measurements of^239+240Pu in human tissues, from nuclear weapons testing, provide an invaluable source of data for verifying the uptake and distribution of radionuclides in the body. Measured concentrations of^239+240Pu in lung, tracheobronchial lymph nodes, liver and skeleton have been compared with concentrations calculated using estimated plutonium intakes, the ICRP Publication 66 Respiratory Tract Model and the ICRP Publication 67 biokinetic model for plutonium. Measurement data tend to fall between the concentrations estimated on the basis of Type M and Type S absorption parameters. This indicates that the models represent the movement of plutonium through the body reasonably well.     

A review of the studies on environmental transport and speciation analysis of radionuclides in India

Department of Atomic Energy, India, has a systematic environmental monitoring program to ensure that the impact of radionuclides on human and environment is well within the limits, stipulated by the regulatory body. Concentrations of radionuclides are estimated in air, water, soil, sediment and biota in the environment around the power plant site on a regular basis. The environmental migration pattern and impact of radionuclides in the environment depends upon not only on the total concentration but the physico-chemical nature of radionuclide also. This paper presents a brief review of the studies of environmental transportation of radionuclides and influence of speciation with special reference to Indian conditions. A fairly good amount of results are available on the influence of speciation of radionuclides on the wet and dry deposition and preliminary results are available on the speciation analysis in dietary items, in soil and in ground water. Initial studies are concentrated on tritium, ¹³⁷Cs, Uranium, ⁹⁰Sr and their chemical analogues.     

Global ecology and the human hair composition

As an example of the mapping of human hair composition, the territory of Uzbekistan was chosen. The data and the maps obtained were compared with the environmental situation and medical statistics. World maps were drawn on the basis of various authors' data. The possibility of using human hair for radioactivity studies is discussed on the basis of data obtained in the Chemobyl area. The proposed scheme of human hair analysis may be used for world mapping for chemical elements, radionuclides, pesticides, dioxines, PCBs, etc., either to picture the global situation or as a health status on the level of populations.Presented at the MTAA-8 Conference, September 16–20, 1991, Vienna, Austria.     

Recent developments in biokinetic models and the calculation of internal dose coefficients

In most cases the measurement of radioactivity in an environmental or biological sample will be followed by some estimation of dose and possibly risk, either to a population or an individual. This will normally involve the use of a dose coefficient (dose per unit intake value) taken from a compendium. In recent years the calculation of dose coefficients has seen many developments in both biokinetic modelling and computational capabilities. ICRP has recommended new models for the respiratory tract and for the systemic behavior of many of the more important elements. As well as this, a general age-dependent calculation method has been developed which involves an effectively continuous variation of both biokinetic and dosimetric parameters, facilitating more realistic estimation of doses to young people. These new developments were used in work for recent ICRP, IAEA and CEC compendia of dose coefficients for both members of the public (including children) and workers. This paper presents a general overview of the method of calculation of internal doses with particular reference to the actinides. Some of the implications for dose coefficients of the new models are discussed. For example it is shown that compared with data in ICRP Publications 30 and 54: the new respiratory tract model generally predicts lower deposition in systemic tissues per unit intake; the new biokinetic models for actinides allow for burial of material deposited on bone surfaces; age-dependent models generally feature faster turnover of material in young people. All of these factors can lead to substantially different estimates of dose and examples of the new dose coefficients are given to illustrate these differences. During the development of the new models for actinides, human bioassay data were used to validate the model. Thus, one would expect the new models to give reasonable predictions of bioassay quantities. Some examples of the bioassay applications, e.g., excretion data for the plutonium model, are discussed briefly.     

Nuclear and chemical data for life sciences

Use of reactor produced radionuclides is popular in life sciences. However, cyclotron production of proton rich radionuclides are being more focused in recent times. These radionuclides have already gained attention in various fields, including life sciences, provided they are obtained in pure form. This article is a representative brief of our contributions in generating nuclear data for the production of proton rich radionuclides of terbium, astatine, technetium, ruthenium, cadmium, niobium, zirconium, rhenium, etc., which may have application in clinical, biological, agriculture studies or in basic research. The chemical data required to separate the product isotopes from the corresponding target matrix have been presented along with a few propositions of radiopharmaceuticals. It also emphasizes on the development of simple empirical technique, based on the nuclear reaction model analysis, to generate reliable nuclear data for the estimation of yield and angular distribution of emitted neutrons and light charged particles from light as well as heavy ion induced reactions on thick stopping targets. These data bear utmost important in radiation dosimetry.     

Application of synthetic reference materials in the medical radiological research centre

The contents of 21 chemical elements (Ag, Br, Ca, Cl, Co, Cr, Cs, Fe, Hg, K, Mg, Mn, Na, P, Rb, Sb, Sc, Se, Sr, Zn, Zr) in synthetic reference materials (SRMs) were compared with those in natural reference materials (NRMs) using short- and long-lived radionuclides. SRMs called synthetic standards (SSs) and synthetic standards, biological (SSBs) were prepared on the basis of phenol-formaldehyde resol resins in the Institute of Physics, Georgian Academy of Science. The NRMs included such IAEA reference materials as H-4 (animal muscle), A-13 (animal blood), H-5 (animal bone), SL-1 (lake sediment), SOIL-7 (soil), A-9 (mixed human diet), and IAEA-153 (milk powder). It was shown that SSB-SRMs possessed good representativity of the 30–50 mg tablets, high precision, operational convenience, and could be recommended for the INAA of a wide range of medico-biological and bioecological objects.     

Colloidal forms of radionuclides and their separation from water solution

Colloidal properties of¹⁴⁴Ce(III),¹⁴⁷Pm(III),⁹¹Y(III), and other, radionuclides were determined from the course of their self-diffusion. A reduced self-diffusion indicated the formation of colloidal radionuclides. The decrease in the self-diffusion coefficient began from a certain value of pH, and a pH region of slowest self-diffusion existed for each of the radionuclides studies. The maximum formation of colloidal radionuclides may be assumed to lie in the range of these pH values. An increase in the rate of self-diffusion was observed with radionuclides in colloidal forms under the effect of gamma-radiation. The possibility of mutual interaction between radionuclides was also inferred from the course their self-diffusion. High effective sorption of¹⁴⁷Pm(III) was attained on hydrated ferric oxide in the pH range were hydrolytic products and colloidal forms of¹⁴⁷Pm(III) were formad to a large extent.     

Synthesis of novel nanomaterials and their application in efficient removal of radionuclides

With the development of nuclear energy, large amounts of radionuclides are inevitably released into the natural environment. It is necessary to eliminate radionuclides from wastewater for the protection of environment. Nanomaterials have been considered as the potential candidates for the effective and selective removal of radionuclides from aqueous solutions under complicated conditions because of their high specific surface area, large amounts of binding sites, abundant functional groups, pore-size controllable and easily surface modification. This review mainly summarized the recent studies for the synthesis, fabrication and surface modification of novel nanomaterials and their applications in the efficient elimination and solidification of radionuclides,and discussed the interaction mechanisms from batch experiments, spectroscopy analysis and theoretical calculations. The sorption capacities with other materials, advantages and disadvantages of different nanomaterials are compared, and at last the perspective of the novel nanomaterials is summarized.     

Lateritic minerals for decontamination of radionuclides

Naturally available lateritic minerals (LM) have been used on laboratory scale for the removal of Ce, Gd and Lu radionuclides from nuclear industry and reactor effluents. The adsorption behavior using radiotracers is reported, describing factors such as the nature and strength of acids, particle size, temperature and equilibration time which influence the adsorption mechanism. The interference of various anions and organic complexing agents on sorption of these radiotracers has also been considered. The optimized physico-chemical conditions and high loading capacities suggest an, effective use of LM for the isolation of the radionuclides from industrial and reactor effluents. Leaching studies made on pelletized LM loaded with the radionuclides indicate their potential for disposal in reduced solid form for a longer period.     

Assessment of intake of a complex radionuclide bearing dust formed at a nuclear power plant

The aim of this work was to provide an experimental basis for assessing intakes of an industrial actinide-bearing dust from measurements of⁶⁰Co and¹³⁷Cs in the body or urine. Whilst these radionuclides comprised 72% and 19% of the radioactivity present, greater than 90% of the committed effective dose will result from the low concentrations of the actinides present, 0.4%. To assess the dose coefficient for the dust and predict the biokinetics of⁶⁰Co and¹³⁷Cs in workers, absorption parameters for transfer from lungs to blood obtained from an animal study were combined with information on particle deposition and clearance from the ICRP human respiratory tract model and with tissue distribution and excretion data from the most recent systemic models. All other radionuclides were assumed to have Type M absorption characteristics. The dose coefficient for the dust, 1.29·10^–7 Sv·Bq^–1 was estimated to contain 113 kBq⁶⁰Co, 29 kBq¹³⁷Cs and 0.64 kBq of the actinides. The predicted retention and excretion characteristics of⁶⁰Co and¹³⁷Cs in workers after acute or chronic exposure to the dust suggested that measurements of these radionuclides in the body or urine could detect intakes equivalent to a few percent of an annual dose limit of 20 mSv·y^–1.     

Actinides and Long-Lived Radionuclides in Tissues of the Japanese Population: Summary of the Past 20-Year Studies

Radioactive fallout constitutes the major source of contamination of the environment with fission products. Our primary interest was in selected fission products, such as ¹³¹I, ⁸⁹Sr, ⁹⁰Sr, and ¹³⁷Cs, and neutron activation products, such as ³H and ¹⁴C. Plutonium-239,240, ²⁴¹Am and ⁹⁰Tc are generated from nuclear tests, and they are important by-products of nuclear industries. Polonium-210, ²¹⁰Pb and ²³²Th, ²³⁰Th and ²²⁸Th occur widely in nature. These radionuclides enter the human body through inhalation and the ingestion through food and water. These nuclides may cause radiation doses to certain organs of the body. Assessment of the resulting health hazards is an essential public health activity, which demands reliable techniques for the assay of the various radionuclides in man and his environment. In this paper, we present the accumulation of radionuclides from man-made sources and primordial radionuclides in various tissues of the Japanese population. The studies were performed at the Department of Public Health, Akita University School of Medicine, during the periods from 1973 to 1995.     

Removal of Cs,Sr, U and Pu species from simulated nuclear waste effluent using graphene oxide

This article reports the findings from a series of radioactive experimental trials which have examined the sorption properties of graphene oxide focused on four key radionuclides commonly linked to effluent challenges in the nuclear industry—Cs, Sr, U and Pu. Unlike previous experimental studies, simulated effluent waste solutions were utilised with compositions typical of those found at the Sellafield nuclear site, UK. Molecular dynamics simulations were performed in parallel to elucidate the functional groups to which radionuclides preferentially adsorb.     

Radioanalysis in the Benelux

A general survey on the development of the radiochemistry in the Benelux is given. Production of radionuclides and radiopharmaceuticals, application of gamma-irradiation, the activation analysis and measurement of capture gamma-rays, tracer studies, actinide research and detection of radionuclides in environmental samples are mentioned and briefly discussed as the main subjects, going on in the radioanalytical laboratories of the Benelux.     

Radionuclide migration experiments in the laboratory: Some radioanalytical aspects

Radionuclide transport studies in consolidated and unconsolidated geological media are being performed in the laboratory as part of the Canadian Nuclear Fuel Waste Management Program. These studies present an interesting challenge to radiochemists because many of the radionuclides are either not eluted or only partially eluted from fractures or from columns. Therefore, non-invasive radiometric analyses have been applied to determine the location of radionuclides along a flow path during a migration experiment, and invasive analyses have been developed to determine the transport behaviour of these radionuclides at the termination of a migration experiment. Linear gamma scanning has been used in migration experiments with^95mTc and¹³¹I through columns of crushed fracture-infilling material to follow their movement through the columns. Two-dimensional gamma scanning has been used to determine the distribution of¹⁴⁴Ce on fracture surfaces at the termination of migration experiments through natural fractures in granite. In addition, information on the interaction of radionuclides with specific minerals can often be obtained by separating minerals on the basis of density, or by a combination of density and magnetic properties, followed by radiometric assay of the separated fractions.     

Comparison of Linear and Nonlinear Forms of Isotherm Models for Strontium Sorption on a Sodium Bentonite

Sorption on bentonite will play an important role in retarding the migration of radionuclides from a waste repository. Bentonite is characterized by low permeability, water swelling capability and excellent sorption potential for cationic radionuclides. To correctly assess the sorption potential of radionuclides on bentonite is essential for the development of predictive migration models. The sorption isotherm model is usually used to describe the sorption behavior and assess the sorption potential of radionuclides on bentonite. However, there are few studies to investigate the feasibility of isotherm models for the sorption of radionuclides on bentonite. Thus, in this study, we compared the goodness-of-fit of linear and nonlinear forms of two common isotherm models, Langmuir and Freundlich equations. The experimental sorption isotherms of strontium (Sr) on Wyoming bentonite, MX-80, were used for illustration. The results showed that the nonlinear forms of Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm models are more suitable for fitting the experimental sorption isotherms of Sr on MX-80 than are the linear forms. Thus, the nonlinear forms of isotherm models should be primarily adopted to fit experimental isotherms. On the other hand, we also found that the goodness-of-fit of Langmuir model is better than that of Freundlich model. Moreover, based on the theoretical assumptions of Langmuir isotherm model, the parameters M and K _L represent the sorption capacity and affinity, respectively. One can use the values of M and K _L , obtained from fitting the experimental isotherms, to assess the sorption potential of radionuclides in bentonite. Thus, we suggested that the Langmuir isotherm model is more useful for investigating the sorption behavior of radionuclides on bentonite.     

Accelerator mass spectrometry: ultra-sensitive analysis for global science

Accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) is the analytical technique of choice for the detection of long-lived radionuclides that cannot be practically analysed with decay counting or conventional mass spectrometry. AMS has been used for the analysis of ¹⁴C, ¹⁰Be, ³⁶Cl and other cosmogenic radionuclides in archaeology, geology and environmental science. In addition, the ultrasensitivity of AMS is being applied in biomedicine to study the exposure of human tissues to chemicals and biomolecules at attomole levels. AMS is also being considered for the detection of anthropogenic radionuclides, such as ¹²⁹I and ²³⁶U, in environmental samples for the verification of the nuclear non-proliferation agreements. The state of the art of AMS is reviewed with examples from some recent applications.     

Chemical speciation of radionuclides migrating in groundwaters

In order to more accurately predict the rates and mechanisms of radionuclide migration from lowlevel waste disposal facilities via groundwater transport, ongoing studies are being conducted at field sites at Chalk River Laboratories to identify and characterize the chemical speciation of mobile, long-lived radionuclides migrating in groundwaters. Large-volume water sampling techniques are being utilized to separate and concentrate radionuclides into particulate, cationic, anionic, and nonionic chemical forms. Most radionuclides are migrating as soluble, anionic species which appear to be predominately organoradionuclide complexes. Laboratory studies utilizing anion exchange chromatography have separated several anionically complexed radionuclides, e.g.,⁶⁰Co and¹⁰⁶Ru, into a number of specific compounds or groups of compounds. Large-volume ultra-filtration experiments have shown that significant fractions of the radionuclides are being transported in these groundwaters in the form of macromolecules having molecular weights ranging from less than 3,000 to 100,000.