Linearity of iodine sorption and sorption capacities for seven soils
- Whiteshell Labs., Pinawa, Manitoba (Canada)
Iodine, a soluble and prevalent element in spent nuclear fuel and a pivotal element in the assessment of Canada`s nuclear fuel waste disposal option, sorbs to soils rich in organics and hydrous oxides. Biotic factors, such as microbes, enzymes and plant exudates, have been implicated in the retention of I to soils. Anion exchange of I{sup {minus}} or IO{sub 3}{sup {minus}} and chemical or biological oxidation to I{sub 2} followed by reactions with the soil organic matter are possible retention mechanisms. We have carried out sorption and desorption studies across a wide range of soil solution concentrations (10{sup {minus}7} to 10{sup 5} mg I/L, 10{sup {minus}12} to 1 M) for seven soils typical of upland and lowland soils of the Canadian Precambrian Shield. Soil solid-liquid partition values (K{sub d}), required for impact assessments, varied from 60 to 1800 L/kg and were significantly correlated with extractable Al oxide content, and background I and organic matter content. Freundlich isotherm fits show that sorption of I across our intentionally large concentration range is nonlinear; however, sorption of I across our intentionally large concentration range is nonlinear; however, sorption of I at environmental concentrations (<0.1 mg I/L soil solution) is linear and can be described by the K{sub d} model. Sorption of I was not related to peroxidase enzyme activity. Desorption percentages were small implying sorption was not easily reversed, even with a strong electrolyte, KNO{sub 3}. Desorption results and simple correlations of I sorption to soil properties suggest that the oxidation of I{sup {minus}} to I{sub 2} and complexation to organic functional groups or oxides are the major processes for I retention in Shield soils. 52 refs., 2 figs., 2 tabs.
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- OSTI ID:
- 430945
- Journal Information:
- Journal of Environmental Quality, Vol. 25, Issue 6; Other Information: PBD: Nov-Dec 1996
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Kinetics of Zn sorption-desorption using a thin disk flow method
Sorption-desorption behavior of phenanthrene elucidated by pyrolysis-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry studies of soil organic matter