Screening of plant species for comparative uptake abilities of radioactive Co, Rb, Sr and Cs from soil

In case of radioactive fallout, persistence of long lived nuclides in soil and subsequent transfer into the food chain through plants over a long period is the key factor. The possibility of phytoremediation is suggested to reduce the radionuclides in soil. To exploit the natural potential of some plants in absorbing or accumulating certain radionuclides and depleting the soil radioactivity, thirty-two plant species were tested under laboratory conditions for their comparative ability in taking up radioactive Rb, Co, Sr and Cs. Broccoli and tomato for Co, tomato, chard, sunflower and cucumber for Rb; cucumber, sunflower and turnip (Kyona) for Sr, and tomato, chard and cucumber for Cs were found to be effective compared to other species tested.     

Uptake of134Cs by plants from three different types of soil

In¹³⁴Cs uptake by the roots of orchard grass and beans planted in three different lands of soil has been studied. For this purpose, a¹³⁴Cs radionuclide solution having 0.3086 Ci/pot radioactivity was added to Ando, Serpentine and Alluial and Clay soil which were fertilized by Standard, –K, +Ca, Water limited and Control for both orchard grass and bean groups. Thus, the above mentioned groups have been harvested and left to dry. The contamination levels these plants have been detected and measured by using an HPGe detector interactively working with MCA. Finally, it has been determined that the¹³⁴Cs uptakes depend primarily on soil characteristics. Besides the decrease in the¹³⁴Cs activity for the plants grown in soils to which the stable cesium or potassium was added 0.011–1.38 per cent activity for the root of plants grown in free K soils was observed. Moreover, highest¹³⁴Cs activity has been determined for the plants grown in –K fertilized soil with respect to the other soil samples.     

Dry deposition velocity of iodine-129 onto grass as obtained by field measurements in the environment of a nuclear fuel reprocessing plant

The deposition velocity of gaseous organic¹²⁹I species from the exhaust air stack of the Karlsruhe reprocessing plant onto pasture grass was measured by a field experiment. By simultaneously measuring the amount of¹²⁹I deposited per unit area of pasture grass and the time integrated mean air concentration of¹²⁹I a deposition velocity of V_g=5.8×10^–1 /cm s^–1/ onto pasture grass was determined.     

An index of electrotopological state for atoms in molecules

A new method for molecular structure quantitation is described, in which both electronic and topological attributes are united. The method uses the hydrogen-suppressed skeleton to represent the structure and leads to a graph invariant index for the individual atoms and hydride groups of the molecular skeleton. An intrinsic atom value is calculated for each atom asI = ( + 1)/, in which and are the counts of valence and sigma electrons of atoms in the molecular skeleton, that is, exclusive of bonds to hydrogen atoms. The electrotopological state valueS _i for an atomi is defined asS _i =I _i + I _i, where the influence of atom j on atom i, I _i, is given as (I _i-j _j)/r ²;r is the graph separation between atoms i and j, counted as number of atoms, includingi andj. The information in the electrotopological state values is revealed by examples of various types of organic structures, including chain branching and heteroatom variation. The relation of the E-state value to NMR chemical shift is demonstrated for a series of carbonyl compounds.     

Influence of plant roots upon the mobility of radionuclides in soil, with respect to location of contamination below the surface

The movement of⁸⁵Sr,¹³⁷Cs,⁵⁴Mn and⁶⁰Co in the 50 cm soil profile was studied with and without the presence of plant roots (triticum aestivum) in order to investigate the influence of roots and depth contamination upon the migration of radionuclides. The water table was maintained manually at 3 cm from the bottom. The physiochemical characteristics (E_h Fe^–2, NH ₄ ⁺ , pH and moisture content) as well as the total and extractable radioactivity were investigated. In the discrete contamination, where the location of contamination varied within the soil profile (0–5, 25–30 or 45–50 cm from the top), the influence of location upon the movement of these radionuclides was also studied. It was found that the changes in the soil physicochemical characteristics influenced the mobility of the four radionuclides. The extractability of⁵⁴Mn and⁶⁰Co was significantly increased in the reducing region of the soil, whereas that of⁸⁵Sr,¹³⁷Cs was not. Plant roots excerted significant effects upon the soil characteristics, via, reducing the E_h pH and moisture content of the soil; increasing the extractability of both⁵⁴Mn and⁶⁰Co from the depth of 35 cm downwards. Radionuclide migration occurred via physicochemical and biological transport. The biological transport via plant roots was of particular importance for¹³⁷Cs. Location of contamination had a significant influence upon the mobility of radionuclides. The migration of radionuclides was in the sequence of contamination in middle>bottom>top. The degree of the influence varied with radionuclides concemed. In the top layer contamination, the rank of the migration from the contamination layers, on the other hand⁵⁴Mn,⁶⁰Co and¹³⁷Cs were more mobile and the movement was:⁸⁵Sr⁵⁴Mn⁶⁰Co>¹³⁷Cs. In the middle and bottom contamination layers, on the other hand,⁵⁴Mn and⁶⁰Co and¹³⁷Cs were more mobile and the movement was⁸⁵Sr⁵⁴Mn⁶⁰Co>¹³⁷Cs. The results provide evidence conceming the soil-root interaction influencing the transfer efficiency of radionuclides from below the soil surface into the human food chain.     

Änderungen des Ascorbinsäuregehaltes von Leguminosen unter dem Einfluß von β- oder γ-Strahlung, 2. Mitt.

Zusammenfassung Der Ascorbinsäuregehalt von fünf Leguminosen, nämlich Vicia faba, Vigna sinensis, Phaseolus vulgaris, Trigonella foenum graecum und Lupinus termis, wird angegeben. Die durchschnittliche Veränderung im Vitamin C-Gehalt der Samen während der Keimung wird aufgezeigt. Die Auswirkung von -Strahlen, die kleine Mengen von radioaktivem H₃ ³²PO₄ aussenden, sowie die der -Strahlung von radioaktivem¹³¹J,¹³⁷Cs oder⁶⁰Co auf die Keimlinge wird beschrieben.

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The ascorbic acid content of five sorts of leguminous plants, viz., Vicia Faba, Vigna Sinensis, Phaseolus Vulgaris, Trigonella Foenum Graecum and Lupinus Termis is given. The average variations in the vitamin C content of the seeds during germination are shown. The effects or -irradiation emitted from small doses of radioactive H₃ ³²PO₄ as well as -irradiation of¹³¹I,¹³⁷Cs or⁶⁰Co on the seedlings are demonstrated.

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Mit 9 Abbildungen     

Radioactive cesium deposition on rice,wheat, peach tree and soil after nuclear accident in Fukushima

We present how radioactive Cs was deposited on wheat, rice, peach tree and soil after nuclear accident in Fukushima. The deposition of radioactive Cs was found as spots at the surface of the leaves, branch or trunk of the trees, as well as in soil using one of the imaging method, autoradiography. The deposited radioactive Cs was not easily washed out, even with the treatment of acid solution. When the wheat was harvested 2 months after the accident, high radioactivity of Cs was found only on the leaves developed and expanded at the time of the accident. In the case of the rice grain, most of the radioactivity was found in bran and the radioactivity was drastically reduced in milled rice. Most of the radioactive Cs accumulation in rice plants was estimated from the absorption of the Cs ion dissolved in water, rather than Cs adsorbed in soil.     

Study on the effect of laser irradiation on wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) variety PBW-373 seeds on zinc uptake by wheat plants

The present study was carried out to investigate the effect of He?CNe laser irradiations on wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) variety PBW-373 seeds on uptake and internal distribution of zinc ion in wheat plants for different irradiation time in soil culture. The transport of zinc from root system to shoot and grain was studied by incorporating radioactive zinc as zinc chloride (Zn^*Cl₂) with the nutrient solution to the plants. The ⁶⁵Zn activity absorbed by the matured plants and distributed in different parts (root, shoot and grain) was measured with a calibrated NaI (Tl) gamma ray spectrometer. The results led the conclusion that translocation of zinc from shoot to grain in mature plants in treated soaked seeds showed a better result in comparison to dry treated and control seeds. The utilization of zinc from roots to shoots was higher in the plants grown from dry seeds in all given treatments and from shoot to grain was best in soaked seeds at 2?min irradiation period.     

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.     

Physico-chemical properties of silica-supported vanadium oxide catalysts

- . TiO₂ ZnO. - CO₂ H₂O. — .

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The effect of visible light on propane and n-butane oxidation has been sutied on a seires of metal oxides. TiO₂ and ZnO have been found to exert a photocatalytic effect. On TiO₂, propane and n-butane are oxidized to CO₂ and H₂O. On ZnO as catalyst, partial oxidation products, aldehydes and ketones, are formed.