Activity, size, and flux of resuspended particles from Rocky Flats soil

Conference · Fri Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 1982

OSTI ID:6623897

Langer, G

Wind erosion processes that resuspend soil from Rocky Flats (rf) sites known as the pad field and the east field were studied. The soil in these sites contains above background amounts of Pu and Am. The following five major areas of concern were studied: Pu levels in source area soil; total Pu activity and activity-particle size relationship in the wind resuspended dust; culpability of suspected source areas for Pu activity reported by the RF surveillance samplers; Pu activity in the respirable and coarse fraction of wind resuspended dust; Pu activity in resuspended dust from wind tunnel simulations of wind erosion. Results indicate that Pu attached to wind blown dust from the pad field and the east field at rf does not present a health hazard. The Pu carrying dust particles are too large (> 3 ..mu..m) to be respirable and most are above the inhalable size (> 10 ..mu..m). For the July 1981 to March 1982 period, 90% of the Pu collected by the surveillance samplers east of the pad field originated from this field. For those months 90% of the winds over 14 m/s originated from the two western quadrants. Winds over 14 m/s resuspend most of the dust. From April to June 1982 there were no winds over 14 m/s and Pu originated about equally from the pad and east field. Wind tunnel resuspension of dust varied as the 2.8 to 4.2 power of wind speed for a soil moisture range of 14 to 1% respectively. Above 14% moisture little dust was resuspended. No measurable respirable particles (< 3 ..mu..m) were resuspended.

• Research Organization: Rockwell International Corp., Golden, CO (USA). Rocky Flats Plant
• DOE Contract Number: AC04-76DP03533
• OSTI ID: 6623897
• Report Number(s): RFP-3469; CONF-821136-10; ON: DE83006265
• Resource Relation: Conference: 4. international conference on precipitation scavenging, dry deposition and resuspension, Santa Monica, CA, USA, 29 Nov 1982; Other Information: Microfiche only, copy does not permit paper copy reproduction
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.
PLUTONIUM 239
PARTICLE RESUSPENSION
HEALTH HAZARDS
PARTICLE SIZE
PLUTONIUM
RADIATION DOSES
RADIOACTIVITY
RESPIRATION
ROCKY FLATS PLANT
SOILS
WIND
WIND TUNNELS
ACTINIDE ISOTOPES
ACTINIDE NUCLEI
ACTINIDES
ALPHA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
DOSES
ELEMENTS
EVEN-ODD NUCLEI
HAZARDS
HEAVY NUCLEI
ISOTOPES
METALS
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
NUCLEI
PLUTONIUM ISOTOPES
RADIOISOTOPES
SIZE
TRANSURANIUM ELEMENTS
TUNNELS
UNDERGROUND FACILITIES
US AEC
US DOE
US ERDA
US ORGANIZATIONS
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
500300* - Environment
Atmospheric- Radioactive Materials Monitoring &amp; Transport- (-1989)
560161 - Radionuclide Effects
Kinetics
&amp; Toxicology- Man
510301 - Environment
Terrestrial- Radioactive Materials Monitoring &amp; Transport- Soil- (-1987)