Environment in the vicinity of Uravan mill: characterization of radioactive effluents and airborne radionuclide concentrations
A short-term study was conducted at the Uravan uranium mill of Union Carbide Corporation during November-December 1977 to characterize the principal sources of radioactive emissions and to measure the airborne particulate concentrations of U-238, Th-230, Ra-226, Pb-210, and Rn-222 and its daughters in working-level units. The average specific activity of the throughput for the two months was 470 pCi/g for each radionuclide, indicating secular radioactive equilibrium. The average specific activities of the two-month samples of the solid tailings were 1160 pCi/g for Ra-226, 1210 pCi/g for Pb-210, 90.3 pCi/g for U-238 and 533 pCi/g for Th-230. The concentrations of the soluble radionuclides in water from the nearby San Miguel River suggest possible contamination of the river by the mill tailings. We measured the size distribution of airborne particle at several locations and determined the specific activity of U-238, Th-230, Ra-226, and Pb-210 as a function of particle size. We also simulated the dispersion of airborne effluents at sunrise and sunset, both on the mesa and within the canyon. The results indicate the probable trapping at night of the effluents release within the canyon. They also indicate accumulation in the canyon of radon gas released from the tailings deposited on the mesa. 20 refs., 40 figs., 15 tabs.
- Research Organization:
- Argonne National Lab., IL (USA)
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-31109-ENG-38
- OSTI ID:
- 5152797
- Report Number(s):
- NUREG/CR-2286; ON: TI86000966
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
ACTINIDE ISOTOPES
ACTINIDE NUCLEI
AEROSOLS
AIR
ALKALINE EARTH ISOTOPES
ALPHA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
COLLOIDS
CONTAMINATION
DATA
DAUGHTER PRODUCTS
DAYS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
DISPERSIONS
ECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS
ENVIRONMENTAL TRANSPORT
EVEN-EVEN NUCLEI
EXPERIMENTAL DATA
FEED MATERIALS PLANTS
FLUIDS
GASES
HEAVY NUCLEI
INDUSTRIAL PLANTS
INFORMATION
ISOTOPES
LEAD 210
LEAD ISOTOPES
MASS TRANSFER
MATERIALS
MATHEMATICAL MODELS
MILL TAILINGS
MONITORING
NUCLEAR FACILITIES
NUCLEI
NUMERICAL DATA
PARTICLE SIZE
RADIATION MONITORING
RADIOACTIVE AEROSOLS
RADIOACTIVE EFFLUENTS
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS
RADIOACTIVE WASTES
RADIOECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
RADIOISOTOPES
RADIONUCLIDE MIGRATION
RADIUM 226
RADIUM ISOTOPES
RADON 222
RADON ISOTOPES
RIVERS
SIZE
SOLID WASTES
SOLS
STREAMS
SURFACE AIR
SURFACE WATERS
TAILINGS
THORIUM 230
THORIUM ISOTOPES
URANIUM 238
URANIUM ISOTOPES
WASTES
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES