Regional distribution of Chernobyl-derived plutonium deposition in Finland

The Chernobyl nuclear power plant accident in April 1986 caused a widely spread plume of radionuclides containing, amongst other materials, plutonium isotopes. The regional deposition of these nuclides in Finland has been assessed, based on samples of lichen, peat, precipitation, surface soil and grass. Unlike the deposition of transuranium elements from the weapons tests in the 1950"s and the 1960"s, the deposition in Finland from the Chernobyl accident was very unevenly distributed. Even then, the Chernobyl-derived deposition of ^239,240Pu in the most contaminated regions of Finland was only around 10% of the global fallout from weapons tests. The total amount of ^239,240Pu deposited in Finland was 1^.10¹¹ Bq (»25 g), i.e., approximately half of a percent of the activity deposited in the 1950"s and the 1960"s. In addition to the alpha-emitting Pu isotopes, the Chernobyl plume also contained a significant amount of the beta-emitting ²⁴¹Pu, which is the precursor of the long-lived alpha-emitter ²⁴¹Am. The highest plutonium deposition values were found in a relatively narrow swath from the southwestern coast of Finland northeastwards across the country. This is related to the calculated route of the air parcel trajectory associated with the initial explosion of the Chernobyl reactor. The high deposition values found in the northeastern part of the plume route over Finland can be attributed to the simultaneous occurrence of precipitation. The relatively high plutonium deposition in the southwestern part of Finland occurred, however, without concurrent precipitation. This indicates that the plutonium was at least partly associated with relatively large particles having a substantial deposition velocity due to gravitational setting     

<Superscript>237</Superscript>Np in peat and lichen in Finland

Activity concentrations of ²³⁷Np in peat and lichen samples in Finland were determined and contributions from nuclear weapons testing in 1950–1960s and the Chernobyl accident were estimated. ²³⁷Np was determined with ICP-MS using ²³⁵Np as a tracer. Activity concentrations of ²³⁷Np in peat samples varied between 1.98 ± 0.05 and 14.1 ± 0.3 mBq/m². The contribution from the Chernobyl accident to the total ²³⁷Np deposition in peat was 0.1–13%, the Chernobyl-derived fraction of total ²³⁷Np in peat being much lower than the previously determined corresponding Chernobyl-derived fractions of ^239+240Pu, ²⁴¹Pu, ²⁴¹Am and ²⁴⁴Cm.     

Isotopic composition of plutonium immissions in Austria after the Chernobyl accident

Alpha-spectrometric Pu determinations in aerosol samples collected after the Chernobyl accident in Austria show a²³⁸Pu/²³⁹ (240)Pu ratio in the range of 0.33–0.76 with a most reliable value of 0.47. From²⁴¹Am measurements in old Pu preparations and air filter analyses also²⁴¹Pu activities have been calculated. The ratio²⁴¹Pu/^{239 (240)}Pu during the main contamination period is 74.6±5.7, when maximum²⁴¹Pu concentrations in air achieved 4.5–6.0 mBq/m³.     

241Pu concentration in southern Baltic Sea ecosystem

Summary ²⁴¹Pu concentrations were calculated indirectly in different compartments of the southern Baltic ecosystem by the activity measurements of²⁴¹Am isotope from the increase of the<span lang=EN-GB style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:Symbol;mso-bidi-font-family:Symbol; mso-ansi-language:EN-GB'>b-emitting²⁴¹Pu at 16-18 years after the Chernobyl accident. Enhanced levels of²⁴¹Pu were observed in all analyzed samples. Maximum values (0.408 and 0.367 mBq^. g^-1d.w.) of the estimated²⁴¹Pu concentrations were found in sediments of Internal Puck Bay and Gdańsk Bay, respectively, and in the suspended matter from water of Gdańsk Bay (77.8 mBq^.g^-1d.w.). The highest²⁴¹Pu/^239+240Pu activity ratio was found in the suspended matter (1500) and water (140). The²⁴¹Pu activity of the air dust was very high in April 1986, 3643±34.3 mBq^.g^-1d.w., and the²⁴¹Pu/^239+240Pu activity ratio was 56, but the highest²⁴¹Pu/^239+240Pu activity ratio of the air dust was measured in August. Then the²⁴¹Pu concentration in air dust decreased quickly to values similar to those before the Chernobyl accident.<span style='font-size:12.0pt'>This study provides new data for the ²⁴¹Pu concentrations in various compartments of the Baltic Sea ecosystem.     

Fallout of transuranium elements following the Chernobyl accident

The deposition of transuranium elements in Sweden following the Chernobyl accident was investigated through the analysis of carpets of lichen-and moss-samples and also air-filters and precipitation. The impact of transuranium elements was small compared to that of radiocesium. The deposition of^239+240Pu was, as for other actinides, inhomogeneously distributed and ranged from 0.1% to 100% of the inventory in 1986 from nuclear detonation tests. The activity ratio of^239+240Pu/¹³⁷Cs was between 10^–3 and 10^–6 in comparison to 10^–2 for nuclear test fallout. The activity ratios of²⁴¹Pu,²⁴²Cm,²³⁸Pu,^243+244Am and^239+240Pu were about 86, 14, 0.47, 0.14, and 0.13 respectively, but large variations were observed. The results from Sweden were compared with those found in South Finland, Denmark and Southern Europe. The deposition over Scandinavia originated from the initial explosion at Chernobyl, which contained relatively higher amounts of actinide elements than the second emission, which occurred a few days later and was a result of actions taken to bring the fire under control.     

Activities of Pu radionuclides and 241Am in soil samples from an alpine pasture in Romania

Activity concentrations of Pu radioisotopes and ²⁴¹Am were determined in the organic and mineral layers of four soil sections collected in 1996, providing for the first time information on the levels of these radionuclides in soil samples from Romania. The investigated site was an alpine pasture located in the Charpathian Mountains, in an area found as one of the most affected in Romania after the Chernobyl accident. In the examined soil sections radioactive inventories were estimated to be 500 Bq/m² for ²⁴¹Pu, 115 Bq/m² for ^239+240Pu, 8 Bq/m² for ²³⁸Pu and 50 Bq/m² for ²⁴¹Am. On the basis of activity ratios in the soil profile, the source of the radioactive release is discussed.     

Plutonium and americium in the sediments off the Thule air base, Greenland

In 1968 a U.S. B-52 bomber from USA with four nuclear weapons crashed on the sea ice near the Thule air base and contaminated the surroundings. Most of contamination was recovered during the cleanup program. However, some of the plutonium still remains in the bottom sediments of the area. In 1997 an international expedition with a comprehensive sampling program was performed. A lot of sediment samples were taken with a Finnish Gemini corer. Sediment samples from 5 sampling stations, 80 samples altogether, were pretreated in Ris, Denmark, and analysed for transuranic elements at STUK, Finland. The samples were analysed primarily for Pu, but gamma-spectrometric measurements of ²⁴¹Am were also made. Generally, the Pu concentrations in the area studied were from 1 to 3 magnitudes higher than the fallout level in the Arctic sea area. None of the vertical profiles of Pu at the various stations showed a typical Pu peak originating from the accident in 1968, but the sediments were mixed down and contaminated to the depths studied (20 cm). The presence of large quantities of hot particles distorted the estimations of mean concentrations and inventories. Samples with plutonium from the accident show significant variations of nuclide ratios, ²³⁸Pu/^239,240Pu, ²⁴¹Pu/^239,240Pu and ²⁴¹Pu/²⁴¹Am. This indicates that Pu at Thule may be from more than one source of different quality.     

Geochemical studies on the Chernobyl radioactivity in environmental samples

Artificial radionuclides in deposition and airborne dust samples in 1986 were measured at Tsukuba and 11 stations in Japan. In May 1986, the Chernobyl radioactivity was observed in rain and air samples in Japan. The Chernobyl-derived Pu isotopes, which are characterized by higher²³⁸Pu/^239,240Pu (85) and²⁴¹Pu/²³⁸Pu (0.5) activity ratios than those of the nuclear test-derived Pu and⁹⁰Sr, were detected in deposition and airborne dust samples in Japan, as well as volatile radionuclides such as¹³¹I and¹³⁷Cs. However, the activities of Pu isotopes and⁹⁰Sr observed in Japan were about two and three orders of magnitude lower than those expected from the activity ratios in the total release at Chernobyl, which means that the residence time of Pu in the air was shorter than that of¹³⁷Cs. In order to understand the fractionation between the Chernobyl radionuclides we studied about individual wet and dry deposition. The results suggest that this cause is due to the difference of the particle size of radionuclide-bearing particles, which may be related to the release process of Chernobyl radionuclides.     

Radioanalytical approach to determine 238Pu, 239+240Pu, 241Pu and 241Am in soils

The simultaneous determination of multiple actinide isotopes in samples where total quantity is limited can sometimes present a unique challenge for radioanalytical chemists. In this study, re-determination of ²³⁸Pu, ^239+240Pu, and ²⁴¹Am for soils collected and analyzed approximately three decades ago was the goal, along with direct determination of ²⁴¹Pu. The soils had been collected in the early 1970’s from a shallow land burial site for radioactive wastes called the Subsurface Disposal Area (SDA) at the Idaho National Lab (INL), analyzed for ²³⁸Pu, ^239+240Pu, and ²⁴¹Am, and any remaining soils after analysis had been archived and stored. We designed an approach to reanalyze the ²³⁸Pu, ^239+240Pu, and ²⁴¹Am and determine for the first time ²⁴¹Pu using a combination of traditional and new radioanalytical methodologies. The methods used are described, along with estimates of the limits of detection for gamma-and alpha-spectrometry, and liquid scintillation counting. Comparison of our results to the earlier work documents the ingrowth of ²⁴¹Am from ²⁴¹Pu, and demonstrates that the total amount of ²⁴¹Am activity in these soil samples is greater than would be expected due to ingrowth from ²⁴¹Pu decay.     

Natural and anthropogenic radionuclides in the rivers of Azerbaijan

In the frame of an International Atomic Energy Agency Technical Cooperation project, a radiological survey was performed in the Araks and Kura Rivers (Azerbaijan). Sediment samples, and where available, aquatic plants were collected along these two rivers and their inflow and tributary rivers. ¹³⁷Cs, ²³⁸U, ²³⁴U, ^239+240Pu, ²³⁸Pu, ⁹⁰Sr and ²⁴¹Am activity concentrations were measured. The radionuclide levels measured were relatively low, and in most cases below the detection limit, as compared with those from other areas of the world which have been directly affected by effluents from nuclear installations or influenced by the Chernobyl accident. The results indicated that the radionuclides are of natural origin or attributable to the atmospheric fallout from nuclear weapons tests or to the Chernobyl-derived deposition.     

Plutonium, 90Sr and 241Am in human bones from southern and northeastern parts of Poland

The paper presents the results of our study on ²³⁸Pu, ²³⁹Pu, ²⁴⁰Pu, ²⁴¹Am and ⁹⁰Sr concentration in human bones carried out on a set of 88 individual samples of central Europe origin. Bone tissue samples were retrieved under surgery while introducing hip joint implants. The conducted surgeries tend to cover either southern or northeastern parts of Poland. While for the southern samples only global fallout was expected to be seen, a mixed global and Chernobyl fallout were to be reflected in the others. Alpha spectrometry was applied to obtain activity concentration for ²³⁸Pu, ^239+240Pu, ²⁴¹Am, while liquid scintillation spectrometry for ⁹⁰Sr and mass spectrometry to receive ²⁴⁰Pu/²³⁹Pu mass ratio. Surprisingly enough, and to the contrary to our expectations we could not see any significant differences in either Pu activity or Pu mass ratio between the studied populations. In both populations Chernobyl fraction proved marginal. The results on ⁹⁰Sr and ²⁴¹Am confirm similarities between the two examined groups.     

Determination of241Pu by low level β-proportional counting. Application to Chernobyl fallout samples and comparison with the241Am build-up method

A chemical separation procedure is described which allows the direct determination of low²⁴¹Pu activities in environmental samples with a windowless gas-flow proportional counter. While current separation schemes based on anion exchange yield counting sources of sufficient purity for subsequent -spectrometry, for -counting of²⁴¹Pu additional purification steps are required. A combination of anion exchange from 9 mol/l HCl, LaF₃ precipitation and TTA extraction was found to be suitable even for the analysis of long-range Chernobyl fallout samples which contained interfering radionuclides with -activities at least 3 to 4 orders of magnitude higher than usually encountered. No difference is detectable between the results of the present, direct procedure and the results of the conventional indirect method based on the build-up of²⁴¹Am. Average²⁴¹Pu/^239+240Pu ratios in air and deposition samples taken at Neuherberg near Munich were 70±6 with the present procedure and 66±9 from²⁴¹Am build-up.     

Depth profiles of long lived radionuclides in Chernobyl soils sampled around 10 years after the accident

Depth profiles of the long-lived radionuclides, ¹³⁷Cs, ⁹⁰Sr, Pu isotopes and ²⁴¹Am were examined in undisturbed sandy, peaty and Podsol soils in the Chernobyl 30 km exclusion zone sampled around 10 years after the accident. Two Podsol soils, which have different radioactive deposition characteristics, have also been examined. Activity ratios of ^239,240Pu/¹³⁷Cs, ⁹⁰Sr/¹³⁷Cs, and ²⁴¹Am/¹³⁷Cs in the 0-1 cm layer of the two Podsol soils differed very much. Speciation of the radionuclides by sequential selective extraction was examined in the soils. Depth profiles of the soils have been analyzed according to the speciation results and soil characteristics.     

Simultaneous determination of238Pu,239+240Pu,241Pu,241Am,242Cm,244Cm,89Sr,and90Sr in vegetation samples,and application to Chernobyl-fallout contaminated grass

A radiochemical procedure is described for the simultaneous determination of²³⁸Pu,^239+240Pu,²⁴¹Pu,²⁴¹Am,²⁴²Cm,²⁴⁴Cm,⁸⁹Sr, and⁹⁰Sr in vegetation samples. The method was applied for the determination of these, radionuclides in grass, collected near Munich after the fallout from the reactor accident at Chernobyl, USSR. The specific activities observed were (in Bq kg^–1 dry weight):²³⁸Pu, 0.077;^239+240Pu, 0.15;²⁴¹Pu, 3.9;²⁴¹Am, 0.031;²⁴²Cm, 3.0;²⁴⁴Cm, 0.008;⁸⁹Sr, 2000;⁹⁰Sr, 99.     

Deposition of90Sr and plutonium isotopes derived from the Chernobyl accident in Japan

To clarify environmental effects of the Chemobyl radionuclides, long-lived Chernobyl radioactivity (^239,240Pu,²³⁸Pu,²⁴¹Pu and⁹⁰Sr) in deposition samples in May 1986 was measured at 11 stations in Japan. Temporal variation of weekly deposition of⁹⁰Sr differed from that of volatile radionuclides such as¹³¹I and¹³⁷Cs, which may reflect the released process at Chernobyl. On the other hand, the geographical distributions of the monthly deposition of long-lived radionuclides were similar to those of volatile radionuclides, in which maximum deposits of⁹⁰Sr and plutonium were observed in Akita, a northwestern Japan Sea coast site of Honshu Island. Higher²⁴¹Pu deposition in most of the stations, as well as high²³⁸Pu/^239,240Pu activity ratios were observed. The²⁴¹Pu/²³⁸Pu activity ratios in deposition samples were nearly equal to that in the total release, which is clear evidence that Chernobyl-derived plutonium was transported to Japan in May 1986 together with volatile radionuclides although the contribution of Chernobyl Pu was about three orders of magnitude lower than¹³⁷Cs.     

Origin and release date assessment of environmental plutonium by isotopic composition

The origin and release date of environmental plutonium have been assessed by the measurement of plutonium and americium isotopic composition. The applicability and sensitivity of different plutonium isotope ratios, ²⁴⁰Pu/²³⁹Pu and ²⁴¹Pu/²³⁹Pu measured by inductively coupled plasma sector field mass spectrometry and ²³⁸Pu/²³⁹Pu analysed by alpha spectrometry, have been evaluated for origin determination in several types of environmental samples. With use of mixing models the contribution of different sources (e.g. global fallout or Chernobyl) can be calculated. By the measurement of the ²⁴¹Am/²⁴¹Pu isotope ratio, the release date (i.e. formation of ²⁴¹Pu by irradiation) can be estimated in environmental samples, which is an important parameter to distinguish recent plutonium release from previous (e.g. Chernobyl) emissions.     

90Sr and239+240Pu238Pu241Am in some samples of mushrooms and forest soil from Poland

Strontium-90, plutonium and americium activity concentrations in a few samples of forest soils, some species of mushrooms and fern leaves have been determined. These results are compared with cesium activity concentrations in the same materials obtained in a previous work. Radiochemical procedures are described. The origin of the contamination (Chernobyl accident or nuclear test explosion release) is discussed. The⁹⁰Sr activity concentration ranges from 0.6 Bq/kg (mushroom samples) to 48.4 Bq/kg (fern leaves). For^239+240Pu, it ranges from not detected above background (mushrooms, fern) to 10.8 Bq/kg (humus layer of forest soil). The maximum concentration of²⁴¹Am is found to be 2.4 Bq/kg (humus sample) and for²³⁸Pu it is 0.85 Bq/kg (also in the humus sample).     

241Pu in the biggest Polish rivers

In the paper the results of ²⁴¹Pu activity concentration determination in the biggest Polish rivers are presented. The analysis of more than 100 river water samples showed the Vistula and the Odra as well as three Pomeranian Rivers are important sources of ²⁴¹Pu in the southern Baltic Sea. There were differences in ²⁴¹Pu activities depending on season and sampling site and the plutonium contamination came mainly from the global atmospheric fallout as well as the Chernobyl accident, which is confirmed by plutonium activity ratios of ²⁴¹Pu/^239+240Pu and ²³⁸Pu/^239+240Pu.     

A gamma monitoring technique for estimating plutonium contamination around nuclear weapons facilities

The objectives of this study were to establish a ratio for²⁴¹Am to²³⁹Pu in soil at the Rocky Flats Plant and to compare²⁴¹Am concentrations obtained using in-situ and laboratory gamma spectroscopy measurements to concentrations determined with radiochemical analysis and alpha spectroscopy. Soil samples were collected for radiochemical and laboratory gamma spectroscopy analysis from vertical profiles in 3 cm layers to a depth of 21 cm at predetermined locations along transects oriented in the direction of prevailing winds. The origin for the transects was the center of the 903 Pad at the Rocky Flats Plant, which is believed to be the source for most of the²⁴¹Am and²³⁹Pu contamination. A 100 minute in-situ gamma spectroscopy measurement was made at each soil sample location with a portable HPGe detector. Soil samples were dried, passed through a 2 mm sieve, mixed, and split in two fractions. One fraction was analyzed radiochemically for²⁴¹Am and²³⁹Pu and the second was analyzed using laboratory gamma spectroscopy. The median ratio of²⁴¹Am to²³⁹Pu activities, which appears to be independent of soil depth and distance from suspected sources, was 0.17. There is a strong correlation between²⁴¹Am and²³⁹Pu concentrations determined using radiochemical analysis with alpha spectroscopy and concentrations determined with laboratory gamma spectroscopy. Results from in-situ gamma spectroscopy measurements were also correlated with the radiochemical analyses but exhibited greater variability than laboratory measurements. This on-going investigation has demonstrated that it is possible to indirectly measure²³⁹Pu concentrations in soil if the ratio of²⁴¹Am to²³⁹Pu can be established. The results indicate that judicious use of a combination of radiochemical analyses with laboratory and in-situ gamma spectroscopy measurements may provide a cost-effective approach for characterization of large sites where²⁴¹Am and²³⁹Pu contamination occur.     

Plutonium isotopes in the surface air in Japan: Effect of Chernobyl accident

Plutonium isotope concentrations in the surface air at Tsukuba, Japan are reported during the period from 1981 to the end of 1986. The^239,240Pu concentration in the surface air, which showed a marked seasonal variation with a spring maximum and fall minimum, decreased until the end of 1985 according to the stratospheric residence time of 1.15 years. In May 1986, elevated^239,240Pu concentrations with high²³⁸Pu/^239,240Pu activity ratios were observed. The serial trend of plutonium concentration in the surface air is similar to the concentrations of the Chernobyl-released radionuclides. These findings suggest that a significant part of the plutonium in the surface air in May 1986 was due to the Chernobyl fallout. The size distribution of plutonium bearing particles indicates that plutonium isotopes were mechanically released in the Chernobyl accident. The surface air concentration of plutonium from the Chernobyl accident was much lower than the concentrations of the volatile fission products, and increased the monthly mean^239,240Pu concentration by only 0.03 Bqm^–3.