Removal of radium from filter sands of a conventional ground water treatment station

Sand granule are used as a filter bed in many ground water treatment stations to remove particulate matter from untreated water. A build up of radioactivity may take place on the granules. The disposal of those granules poses a significant problem. A batch technique was used to test the possibility of removing radioactivity from actual samples of the loaded sands. The study was limited to combined radium (²²⁶Ra and²²⁸Ra). Acidity, temperature, contact time and liquid-to-solid ratio were thoroughly investigated as factors affecting the treatment process. The data obtained are discussed on the basis of the experimental results.