Biological characterization of radiation exposure and dose estimates for inhaled uranium milling effluents. Annual progress report, April 1981-March 1982

Technical Report · Wed Dec 01 04:00:00 EST 1982

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/6612015· OSTI ID:6612015

Eidson, A. F.

The problems addressed are the protection of uranium will workers from occupational exposure to uranium through routine bioassay programs and the assessment of accidental worker exposures. Comparisons of chemical properties and the biological behavior of refined uranium ore (yellowcake) are made to identify important properties that influence uranium distribution patterns among organs. These studies will facilitate calculations of organ doses for specific exposures and associated health risk estimates and will identify important bioassay procedures to improve evaluations of human exposures. Sampling of airborne yellowcake at four uranium mills showed that aerosols were heterogeneous, changed with time and contained approx. 50% of the airborne uranium in particles greater than 12 ..mu..m aerodynamic diameter. Results are related to specific packaging steps and to predictions of appreciable upper respiratory tract deposition rates for the aerosols, if inhaled by a worker without respiratory protection. Previously used in vitro dissolution techniques were evaluated and the uses of the results for interpreting urinary bioassay data are described. Preliminary results from an inhalation experiment using rats indicate that the clearance patterns of inhaled uranium from lung agreed quantitatively with results from in vitro dissolution and infrared analyses of the yellowcake used. Preliminary results from an experiment to simulate contamination of a wound by yellowcake showed that more of the implanted dose of a less soluble form of yellowcake was retained at the wound site than of a more soluble form at 32 days after implantation. The results did not quantitatively agree with in vitro dissolution results. A two-year study of yellowcake from two mills was initiated. Twenty Beagle dogs were exposed by nose-only inhalation to a more soluble form of yellowcake and 20 to a less soluble form.

• Research Organization: Inhalation Toxicology Research Inst., Albuquerque, NM (USA); Lovelace Biomedical and Environmental Research Inst., Albuquerque, NM (USA)
• OSTI ID: 6612015
• Report Number(s): NUREG/CR-2832; LMF-97; ON: DE83900893
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

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11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS
560161 -- Radionuclide Effects
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& Toxicology-- Man
63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.
ABSTRACTS
ACTINIDE COMPOUNDS
AEROSOLS
ANIMALS
BEAGLES
BIOASSAY
BODY
CHALCOGENIDES
CHEMICAL PROPERTIES
CLEARANCE
COLLOIDS
CRITICAL ORGANS
DISPERSIONS
DISTRIBUTION
DOCUMENT TYPES
DOGS
DOSES
EXCRETION
FEED MATERIALS PLANTS
INDUSTRIAL PLANTS
INHALATION
INTAKE
LEADING ABSTRACT
LUNG CLEARANCE
MAMMALS
NUCLEAR FACILITIES
OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY
ORGANS
OXIDES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PERSONNEL
RADIATION DOSES
RADIOACTIVE AEROSOLS
RADIONUCLIDE KINETICS
RATS
RODENTS
SAFETY
SOLS
SOLUBILITY
TISSUE DISTRIBUTION
URANIUM COMPOUNDS
URANIUM OXIDES
URANIUM OXIDES U3O8
VERTEBRATES