Mathematical simulation of sediment and radionuclide transport in coastal waters. Volume 1. Testing of the sediment/radionuclide transport model, FETRA

Technical Report · Tue May 01 04:00:00 EDT 1984

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/6783986· OSTI ID:6783986

Onishi, Y.; Thompson, F. L.

The finite element model, FETRA, is an unsteady, two-dimensional (longitudinal and lateral) model for simulating the transport of sediment and contaminants (e.g., radionuclides, heavy metals, pesticides) in coastal waters. FETRA includes major transport and fate mechanisms explicitly, including sediment/contaminant interactions. The purpose of the study was to test FETRA model with available field data and was not intended to assess the potential impact of the Windscale Nuclear Fuel Reprocessing Plant on the Irish Sea. The model was tested by applying it to the Irish Sea to simulate wind-generated waves and the migration of sediment and /sup 137/Cs. The model predicted distributions of suspended sand; suspended silt; suspended clay; /sup 137/Cs sorbed by each of the three sizes of suspended sediments; dissolved /sup 137/Cs; bed sediment size fractions; and /sup 137/Cs sorbed by bed sand, bed silt, and bed clay over a two-month period in 1974. FETRA generally predicted reasonable migration patterns for the sediments and /sup 137/Cs. The prediction of /sup 137/Cs distributions can be further improved by using a finer grid near the radionuclide release point. The study results indicate that FETRA can simulate the complex phenomena involved in sediment and contaminant transport in coastal waters. However, we recommend that FETRA be tested further at other field sites where the necessary field data are available to validate the model. 47 references, 64 figures, 4 tables.

• Research Organization: Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE; USNRC
• DOE Contract Number: AC06-76RL01830
• OSTI ID: 6783986
• Report Number(s): NUREG/CR--2424-Vol.1; PNL--5088-1-Vol.1; ON: DE84013535
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

520301* -- Environment
Aquatic-- Radioactive Materials Monitoring & Transport-- Water-- (1987)
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
ALKALI METAL ISOTOPES
ATLANTIC OCEAN
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
CESIUM 137
CESIUM ISOTOPES
COASTAL WATERS
ENVIRONMENTAL TRANSPORT
FINITE ELEMENT METHOD
IRISH SEA
ISOTOPES
MASS TRANSFER
MATHEMATICAL MODELS
NUCLEI
NUMERICAL SOLUTION
ODD-EVEN NUCLEI
RADIOISOTOPES
RADIONUCLIDE MIGRATION
SEAS
SEDIMENTS
SURFACE WATERS
TWO-DIMENSIONAL CALCULATIONS
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES