Distribution of plutonium and americium beneath a 33-year-old liquid waste disposal site
The distribution of Pu, /sup 241/Am, and water in Bandelier Tuff beneath a former liquid waste disposal site at Los Alamos was investigated. The waste use history of the site was described, as well as the previous field and laboratory studies of radionuclide migration performed at this site. One of the absorption beds studied had 20.5 m of water added to it in 1961 in an aggressive attempt to change the distribution of radionuclides in the tuff beneath the bed. Plutonium and /sup 241/Am were detected to sampling depths of 30 m in this bed, but only found to depths of 6.5 to 13.41 m in an adjacent absorption bed (bed 2) not receiving additional water in 1961. After 17 yr of migration of the slug water added to bed 1, 0.3 to 5.1% of the Pu inventory and 3.0 to 49.6% of the /sup 241/Am inventory was mobilized within the 30-m sampling depth, as less than one column volume of water moved through the tuff profile under the bed. The results of similar lab and field studies performed since 1953 were compared with our 1978 data and site hydrologic data was used as a time marker to estimate how fast radionuclide migration occurred in the tuff beneath absorption bed 1. Most of the radionuclide migration appeared to have occurred within 1 yr of the 20.5-m water leaching in 1961. 16 references, 2 figures, 4 tables.
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-7405-ENG-36
- OSTI ID:
- 6026528
- Journal Information:
- J. Environ. Qual.; (United States), Journal Name: J. Environ. Qual.; (United States) Vol. 14:4; ISSN JEVQA
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Distribution of radionuclides and water in Bandelier Tuff beneath a former Los Alamos liquid waste disposal site after 33 years
Radiochemical analyses of samples from beneath a solid radioactive waste disposal pit at Los Alamos, New Mexico
Related Subjects
Aquatic-- Radioactive Materials Monitoring & Transport-- Water-- (1987)
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
ACTINIDE ISOTOPES
ACTINIDE NUCLEI
ACTINIDES
ALPHA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
AMERICIUM 241
AMERICIUM ISOTOPES
DATA
ECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
ELEMENTS
ENVIRONMENTAL TRANSPORT
EXPERIMENTAL DATA
FEDERAL REGION VI
GROUND WATER
HEAVY NUCLEI
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
INFORMATION
ISOTOPES
LOS ALAMOS
MANAGEMENT
MASS TRANSFER
METALS
NEW MEXICO
NORTH AMERICA
NUCLEI
NUMERICAL DATA
ODD-EVEN NUCLEI
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PLUTONIUM
RADIOACTIVE WASTE MANAGEMENT
RADIOECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
RADIOISOTOPES
RADIONUCLIDE MIGRATION
SAMPLING
TRANSURANIUM ELEMENTS
UNDERGROUND DISPOSAL
USA
WASTE DISPOSAL
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WATER
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES