Determination of Pu-239, 240 tissue concentrations in non-occupationally exposed residents of New York City

Technical Report · Tue Mar 01 04:00:00 EST 1977

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/7106816· OSTI ID:7106816

Wrenn, M E; Cohen, N

The study reports on the Pu-239, 240 concentrations in various tissues obtained from individuals residing in New York City. Twenty-six tissue samples have been analyzed for their Pu-239, 240 content, which include sections from the right lung, the liver, bone (4th and 5th vertebrae) and the kidney. The tissues were obtained at autopsy from a selected population not occupationally exposed to plutonium and whose deaths were the result of causes other than metabolic disorders. A detailed description is presented of the radiochemical procedures employed to separate Pu and electrochemically deposit plutonium isotopes prior to alpha spectrometry with Si surface-barrier detectors. Results of these measurements are given as activity per gram wet weight and activity per gram of calcium in the individual tissue. All results have been compared to similar measurements made at other laboratories and with estimates of concentration based on metabolic models. To date, the magnitudes and the distribution of the measured values are consistent with the values inferred from the ICRP lung model and measured concentrations of air.

• Research Organization: New York Univ., NY (USA). Inst. of Environmental Medicine
• OSTI ID: 7106816
• Report Number(s): COO-2968-1
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

560161* -- Radionuclide Effects
Kinetics
& Toxicology-- Man
63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.
ACTINIDE ISOTOPES
ACTINIDE NUCLEI
ALPHA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
ALPHA SPECTROMETERS
AUTOPSY
BODY
BONE TISSUES
CHEMISTRY
CONNECTIVE TISSUE
CONTAMINATION
DIAGNOSTIC TECHNIQUES
DIGESTIVE SYSTEM
EVEN-EVEN NUCLEI
EVEN-ODD NUCLEI
GLANDS
HEAVY NUCLEI
HUMAN POPULATIONS
ISOTOPES
LIVER
LUNGS
MEASURING INSTRUMENTS
MID-ATLANTIC REGION
MONITORING
NEW YORK
NEW YORK CITY
NORTH AMERICA
NUCLEI
ORGANS
PLUTONIUM 239
PLUTONIUM 240
PLUTONIUM ISOTOPES
POPULATIONS
RADIATION CHEMISTRY
RADIATION DETECTORS
RADIATION MONITORING
RADIOISOTOPES
RESPIRATORY SYSTEM
SAMPLING
SPECTROMETERS
TISSUES
USA
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES