The use of plant-transpired water to monitor subsurface tritium contamination
Conference
·
OSTI ID:455302
- Univ. of San Francisco, CA (United States)
The experimental technique of sampling plant-transpired water to detect and monitor subsurface tritium contamination in soil water and groundwater was implemented in an area surrounding the National Tritium Labeling Facility (NTLF) at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL). Data collected using the transpiration technique were compared with data collected by conventional soil water and groundwater sampling methods, to evaluate its application as an environmental monitoring tool. Tritium activity in the different ecological waters were compared for thirteen delineated areas. For statistical analysis of spatial and temporal trends, plant sampling stations were categorized as either deep or shallow rooted. Plant-transpired water samples were found to have consistently higher tritium activity than soil water or groundwater in leach localized area. Tritium activity in plant-transpired water diminished with distance from the emission source. Wet season plant-transpired water samples registered statistically significantly higher tritium activity than dry season samples, with the greatest variation from shallow rooted plants. The results of this study indicate that plant-transpired water sampling is a valuable tool in environmental monitoring and may be more sensitive in the detection of subsurface tritium contamination than conventional lysimeter or monitoring well sampling. Plant-transpired water sampling is a promising tool for investigating tritium distribution and concentration in contaminated soil water and groundwater.
- OSTI ID:
- 455302
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-961149--
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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