Uranium Redistribution Due to Water Table Fluctuations in Sandy Wetland Mesocosms
Abstract
To understand better the fate and stability of immobilized uranium (U) in wetland sediments, and how intermittent dry periods affect U stability, we dosed saturated sandy wetland mesocosms planted with Scirpus acutus with low levels of uranyl acetate for 4 months before imposing a short drying and rewetting period. Concentrations of U in mesocosm effluent increased after drying and rewetting, but the cumulative amount of U released following the dry period constituted less than 1% of the total U immobilized in the soil during the 4 months prior. This low level of remobilization suggests, and XANES analyses confirm, that microbial reduction was not the primary means of U immobilization, as the U immobilized in mesocosms was primarily U(VI) rather than U(IV). Drying followed by rewetting caused a redistribution of U downward in the soil profile and to root surfaces. Although the U on roots before drying was primarily associated with minerals, the U that relocated to the roots during drying and rewetting was bound diffusely. Here, the results show that short periods of drought conditions in a sandy wetland, which expose reduced sediments to air, may impact U distribution without causing large releases of soil-bound U to surface waters.
- Authors:
-
- Princeton Univ., NJ (United States)
- U.S. EPA, Cincinnati, OH (United States)
- Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
- Pace Analytical Energy Services, Pittsburgh, PA (United States)
- Savannah River National Lab., Aiken, SC (United States)
- Publication Date:
- Research Org.:
- Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)
- Sponsoring Org.:
- USDOE Office of Science (SC), Biological and Environmental Research (BER)
- OSTI Identifier:
- 1240184
- Grant/Contract Number:
- AC02-06CH11357; SC0006847
- Resource Type:
- Accepted Manuscript
- Journal Name:
- Environmental Science and Technology
- Additional Journal Information:
- Journal Volume: 49; Journal Issue: 20; Journal ID: ISSN 0013-936X
- Publisher:
- American Chemical Society (ACS)
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- ENGLISH
- Subject:
- 63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.; plants; geological materials; bacteria; immobilization; minerals
Citation Formats
Gilson, Emily R., Huang, Shan, Koster van Groos, Paul G., Scheckel, Kirk G., Qafoku, Odeta, Peacock, Aaron D., Kaplan, Daniel I., and Jaffé, Peter R. Uranium Redistribution Due to Water Table Fluctuations in Sandy Wetland Mesocosms. United States: N. p., 2015.
Web. doi:10.1021/acs.est.5b02957.
Gilson, Emily R., Huang, Shan, Koster van Groos, Paul G., Scheckel, Kirk G., Qafoku, Odeta, Peacock, Aaron D., Kaplan, Daniel I., & Jaffé, Peter R. Uranium Redistribution Due to Water Table Fluctuations in Sandy Wetland Mesocosms. United States. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.5b02957
Gilson, Emily R., Huang, Shan, Koster van Groos, Paul G., Scheckel, Kirk G., Qafoku, Odeta, Peacock, Aaron D., Kaplan, Daniel I., and Jaffé, Peter R. Fri .
"Uranium Redistribution Due to Water Table Fluctuations in Sandy Wetland Mesocosms". United States. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.5b02957. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1240184.
@article{osti_1240184,
title = {Uranium Redistribution Due to Water Table Fluctuations in Sandy Wetland Mesocosms},
author = {Gilson, Emily R. and Huang, Shan and Koster van Groos, Paul G. and Scheckel, Kirk G. and Qafoku, Odeta and Peacock, Aaron D. and Kaplan, Daniel I. and Jaffé, Peter R.},
abstractNote = {To understand better the fate and stability of immobilized uranium (U) in wetland sediments, and how intermittent dry periods affect U stability, we dosed saturated sandy wetland mesocosms planted with Scirpus acutus with low levels of uranyl acetate for 4 months before imposing a short drying and rewetting period. Concentrations of U in mesocosm effluent increased after drying and rewetting, but the cumulative amount of U released following the dry period constituted less than 1% of the total U immobilized in the soil during the 4 months prior. This low level of remobilization suggests, and XANES analyses confirm, that microbial reduction was not the primary means of U immobilization, as the U immobilized in mesocosms was primarily U(VI) rather than U(IV). Drying followed by rewetting caused a redistribution of U downward in the soil profile and to root surfaces. Although the U on roots before drying was primarily associated with minerals, the U that relocated to the roots during drying and rewetting was bound diffusely. Here, the results show that short periods of drought conditions in a sandy wetland, which expose reduced sediments to air, may impact U distribution without causing large releases of soil-bound U to surface waters.},
doi = {10.1021/acs.est.5b02957},
journal = {Environmental Science and Technology},
number = 20,
volume = 49,
place = {United States},
year = {Fri Sep 25 00:00:00 EDT 2015},
month = {Fri Sep 25 00:00:00 EDT 2015}
}
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