Monitoring and decontamination techniques for plutonium fallout on large-area surfaces. Test Group 57, Program 73 (of) Operation Plumbbob

Technical Report · Wed May 01 04:00:00 EDT 1957

OSTI ID:6313042

Pinson, E A; Merian, R F; Boecker, B B; Dick, J L

Decontamination methods tested on hard surfaces include vacuuming, high-pressure hosing with water, high-pressure hosing with water followed by scrubbing, high-pressure hosing with water detergent, high-pressure hosing with water detergent followed by scrubbing, sandblasting, and steam cleaning. Hard-surface areas include concrete, asphalt, plate steel, aluminum, galvanized roofing, tar-paper roofing, unpainted wood, painted wood, glass, brick, stucco, wood shingles, and asbestos shingles. Flats of grass were also exposed. The effectiveness of decontamination methods for large land areas was determined by air sampling during resuspension of the contaminant before and after the decontamination operation and by soil sampling. Decontamination methods tested on land areas included plowing, disking, oiling, soaking with fire foam, sprinkling with water, sprinkling with a water--Alconox solution, flooding with water, and wetting with aqueous ferric chloride solution. Present data available indicate that surface monitor readings decrease with time after the shot. Similarly, air concentration decreased rapidly after cloud passage and varied thereafter according to existing weather conditions; i.e., wind and rain. The most effective means of hard-surface decontamination are listed in order of efficiency as follows: sandblasting, water-detergent scrubbing, water-detergent hosing, water hosing, water scrubbing, steam cleaning, and vacuuming. Effectiveness varied from 98.3 to 66.4%. Operationally, the simplest method for pad decontamination appears to be water-detergent hosing. The most effective means of large land-surface decontamination are listed in order of efficiency as follows: plowing, oiling and scraping, scraping, leaching with 0.3 in. of water and scraping, oiling, leaching with 1 in. of water, leaching with 0.3 in. of a water--FeCl/sub 3/ solution, disking, and leaching with 0.3 in. of a water--Alconox solution. Efficiencies varied from 98.3 to 3.0%.

• Research Organization: Air Force Special Weapons Center, Kirtland AFB, NM (USA)
• OSTI ID: 6313042
• Report Number(s): ITR-1512(Del.)
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

500300* -- Environment
Atmospheric-- Radioactive Materials Monitoring & Transport-- (-1989)
510300 -- Environment
Terrestrial-- Radioactive Materials Monitoring & Transport-- (-1989)
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
ACTINIDES
ATMOSPHERIC EXPLOSIONS
CLEANING
CONTAMINATION
DECONTAMINATION
DEPOSITION
ELEMENTS
EXPLOSIONS
FALLOUT
METALS
NUCLEAR EXPLOSIONS
PLUMBBOB PROJECT
PLUTONIUM
SCRUBBING
SURFACE CONTAMINATION
SURFACES
TRANSURANIUM ELEMENTS