Measurement of the transfer coefficient for radiocesium transport from a sheep's diet to its milk.
The rate of increase and decay of radio contamination secreted in sheep's milk, resulting from a constant level of radiocesium in the animals' diet, was investigated. Ten lactating ewes were used in the experiment. For a period of 12 d the animals fed on contaminated grass, resulting in a daily radiocesium intake of 832 Bq per animal. They were subsequently returned to a contamination-free diet and were monitored for another 9 d. Throughout the period of the experiment, 134Cs and 137Cs concentrations in the animals' milk were measured daily with an 18% efficiency, high-resolution Ge detector. The data were in satisfactory agreement with the predictions of a simple two-compartment theory. The transfer coefficient, describing the steady-state equilibrium in this model, was measured as fm = 0.058 +/- 0.007 dL-1.
Assimakopoulos
P A
PA
Nuclear Physics Laboratory, University of Ioannina, Greece.
Ioannides
K G
KG
Pakou
A A
AA
Mantzios
A
A
D000821:Animal Feed / Q000032:analysis*; D000818:Animals; D002588:Cesium Radioisotopes / Q000032:analysis*; D005260:Female; D007774:Lactation; D008892:Milk / Q000032:analysis*; D008954:Models, Biological; D006109:Poaceae / Q000032:analysis; D011247:Pregnancy; D011868:Radioisotopes / Q000032:analysis; D012756:Sheep / Q000378:metabolism*
D002588:Cesium Radioisotopes; D011868:Radioisotopes