Uptake of trace elements and radionuclides from uranium mill tailings by four-wing saltbush (Atriplex canescens) and alkali sacaton (Sporobolus airoides). [Radium 226; Uranium; Molybdenum; Selenium; Vanadium; Astatine]
A greenhouse experiment was performed to determine the uptake of trace elements and radionuclides from uranium mill tailings by native plant species. Four-wing saltbush and alkali sacaton were grown in alkaline tailings covered with soil and in soil alone as controls. The tailings material was highly enriched in Ra-226, Mo, U, Se, V, and As compared with three local soils. The shrub grown in tailings had elevated concentrations of Mo, Se, Ra-226, U, As, and Na compared with the controls. Alkali sacaton contained high concentrations of Mo, Se, Ra-226, and Ni when grown on tailings. Molybdenum and selenium concentrations in plants grown in tailings are above levels reported to be toxic to grazing animals. These results indicate that the bioavailability of Mo and Se in alkaline environments makes these elements among the most hazardous contaminants present in uranium mill wastes.
- Research Organization:
- Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-7405-ENG-36
- OSTI ID:
- 5859187
- Report Number(s):
- LA-UR-79-3045; CONF-791140-1; TRN: 80-001363
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 2. symposium on uranium mill tailings management, Fort Collins, CO, USA, 19 Nov 1979
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS
ASTATINE
ROOT ABSORPTION
GRASS
RADIONUCLIDE KINETICS
MOLYBDENUM
RADIUM 226
SELENIUM
SHRUBS
SOILS
RADIONUCLIDE MIGRATION
URANIUM
VANADIUM
BENCH-SCALE EXPERIMENTS
COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS
CONTAMINATION
EXPERIMENTAL DATA
ISOLATED VALUES
LEACHING
MILL TAILINGS
ORE PROCESSING
TRACE AMOUNTS
URANIUM ORES
ACTINIDES
ALKALINE EARTH ISOTOPES
ALPHA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
DATA
DATA FORMS
DISSOLUTION
ELEMENTS
ENVIRONMENTAL TRANSPORT
EVEN-EVEN NUCLEI
HALOGENS
HEAVY NUCLEI
INFORMATION
ISOTOPES
MASS TRANSFER
METALS
NONMETALS
NUCLEI
NUMERICAL DATA
ORES
PLANTS
PROCESSING
RADIOISOTOPES
RADIUM ISOTOPES
REFRACTORY METALS
SEMIMETALS
SEPARATION PROCESSES
SOLID WASTES
TAILINGS
TRANSITION ELEMENTS
UPTAKE
WASTES
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
560173* - Radiation Effects- Nuclide Kinetics & Toxicology- Plants- (-1987)
510302 - Environment
Terrestrial- Radioactive Materials Monitoring & Transport- Terrestrial Ecosystems & Food Chains- (-1987)
053000 - Nuclear Fuels- Environmental Aspects