Radionuclide accumulation by aquatic biota exposed to contaminated water in artificial ecosystems before and after its passage through the ground
This study was designed to investigate the comparative accumulation of radionuclides from contaminated water in artificial ecosystems before and after the water's passage through the ground. Fish, clams, algae, and an emergent vascular plant were experimentally exposed to mixtures of radionuclides in three aqueous streams. Two streams consisted of industrial water discharged directly into a leaching trench, and the same water after it had migrated through the ground for a distance of 260 meters. The third stream was river water, which served as a background or control. Biota exposed to river water in the control stream had very low concentrations of /sup 60/Co, less than 3 pCi per gram dry weight (pCi/g DW). Other radionuclides were essentially unmeasurable. Biota exposed to trench water accumulated very high relative concentrations of /sup 60/Co. Biota exposed to trench water also had measurable concentrations of /sup 155/Eu, /sup 144/Ce, /sup 141/Ce, /sup 125/Sb, /sup 124/Sb, /sup 103/Ru, /sup 106/Ru, /sup 137/Cs, /sup 95/Zr, /sup 95/Nb, /sup 58/Co, /sup 54/Mn, /sup 59/Fe, /sup 65/Zn, /sup 90/Sr, /sup 239,240/Pu, and /sup 238/Pu. Biota exposed to ground water had concentrations of /sup 60/Co that ranged between 50 and 1200 pCi/g DW. Fish flesh had the lowest concentration of /sup 60/Co and algae the highest. Strontium-90 was measured in the tissues of aquatic biota at concentrations ranging between 360 pCi/g DW in clam flesh to 3400 pCi/g DW in leaves and stems of Veronica. Leaves and fruits of tomato plants rooted in the ground water accumulated /sup 90/Sr at concentrations of 160 pCi in fruits and 4200 pCi in leaves. Data indicate that /sup 60/Co and /sup 90/Sr migrated through the ground along with ground-water flow and were available to all classes of aquatic biota and tomato plants rooted in the water via root uptake, sorption, and food chain transfers. 8 refs., 4 figs., 6 tabs.
- Research Organization:
- Pacific Northwest Lab., Richland, WA (USA)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC06-76RL01830
- OSTI ID:
- 5472009
- Report Number(s):
- NUREG/CR-5047; PNL-5590; ON: TI88005664
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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COBALT 60
SORPTION
UPTAKE
ECOSYSTEMS
RADIOACTIVITY
RADIOISOTOPES
BUILDUP
STRONTIUM 90
ALGAE
BIOLOGICAL AVAILABILITY
CLAMS
COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS
FISHES
FOOD CHAINS
GROUND WATER
PLANTS
RADIONUCLIDE MIGRATION
STREAMS
WATER
ALKALINE EARTH ISOTOPES
ANIMALS
AQUATIC ORGANISMS
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
COBALT ISOTOPES
ENVIRONMENTAL TRANSPORT
EVEN-EVEN NUCLEI
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
INTERMEDIATE MASS NUCLEI
INTERNAL CONVERSION RADIOISOTOPES
INVERTEBRATES
ISOMERIC TRANSITION ISOTOPES
ISOTOPES
MASS TRANSFER
MINUTES LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
MOLLUSCS
NUCLEI
ODD-ODD NUCLEI
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
STRONTIUM ISOTOPES
SURFACE WATERS
VERTEBRATES
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
520300* - Environment
Aquatic- Radioactive Materials Monitoring & Transport- (1989)