Measured plutonium resuspension and resulting dose from agricultural operations on an old field at the Savannah River Plant in the southeastern United States

Conference · Wed Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1975

OSTI ID:4144152

Milham, R C; Schubert, J F; Watts, J R; Boni, A L; Corey, J C

Plutonium resuspensions, based on air-sample activity, were measured during field preparation and planting of winter wheat at the Savannah River Plant (SRP). Plutonium was originally deposited in the field during the previous twenty years as a result of atmospheric releases from SRP's nuclear fuel processing facility located adjacent to the field, and from global fallout following nuclear weapons tests conducted at other sites. During soil cultivation when the prevailing wind speed ranged from 0 to 6.3 m/sec, airborne plutonium upwind of the field consistently averaged 1.7 femtocurie/m$sup 3$. Airborne plutonium concentrations during the various activities associated with site preparation and planting averaged 210 femtocurie/m$sup 3$ at 7.6 m and 10 femtocurie/m$sup 3$ at 30.5 m downwind from the edge of the field. The air at face level on the tractor contained 49 femtocurie/m$sup 3$. The average concentration of plutonium in the 0 to 5 cm soil layer following cultivation was 3100 femtocurie/g. Dose calculations based on measurements of resuspended plutonium indicated that the 70-year bone-dose commitment to an agricultural worker after one hundred 8-hour days would be 49 mrem, 210 mrem, or 1.8 mrem, depending on whether the worker remained in the tractor seat, 7.6 m downwind of the edge of the field, or 7.6 m upwind of the edge of the field. Resuspension factors for the agricultural activities were 103 x 10$sup -8$ m$sup -1$ at 7.6 m downwind, 5 x 10$sup -8$ m$sup -1$ at 30.5 m downwind from the edge of the field, and 24 x 10$sup -8$ m$sup -1$ at the tractor location. (auth)

• Research Organization: Du Pont de Nemours (E.I.) and Co., Aiken, S.C. (USA). Savannah River Lab.
• NSA Number: NSA-33-012342
• OSTI ID: 4144152
• Report Number(s): DP-MS--75-29; CONF-751105--12; SM--199/83
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

*MAN-- RADIATION DOSES
*PLUTONIUM-- DIFFUSION
*SAVANNAH RIVER PLANT- - LAND RECLAMATION
560151* --Biomedical Sciences
Applied Studies--Radiation Effects--Radiation Effects on Animals--Man
AGRICULTURE
CONTAMINATION
FALLOUT DEPOSITS
FUEL REPROCESSING PLANTS
GASEOUS WASTES
HEALTH HAZARDS
N44300 --Environmental & Earth Sciences--Radioactivity Monitoring & Transport
N48510* --Life Sciences--Radiation Effects on Animals--Man
N48610 --Life Sciences--Radionuclide Effects (Internal Source)--Man
RADIOACTIVE EFFLUENTS
RADIONUCLIDE MIGRATION
SOILS
WORKING CONDITIONS