Plutonium contamination from accidental release or simply fallout: study of soils at Palomares (Spain).
The activity concentration of plutonium in an environmental sample does not usually constitute sufficient information to determine if it is due only to fallout. Alpha and gamma spectrometry are used here conjointly in the study of environmental soil samples to distinguish between samples showing plutonium contamination due to fallout exclusively, and samples contaminated with plutonium from another source. The method was applied to soil samples collected in Palomares (Spain), where an accidental release of aerosols contaminated with plutonium occurred. The two contributions (fallout and accidentally released plutonium) were separated by means of the activity ratios between various radionuclides present in the samples analyzed. The fallout level was estimated from the 239 + 240Pu/137Cs activity ratio. For samples showing contamination due to the accident, the 238Pu/239 + 240Pu and 239Pu/240Pu activity ratios were also calculated to determine the grade of plutonium of this contamination.
Rubio Montero
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P
Departamento de Física, Universidad de Extremadura, 06071 Badajoz, Spain.
Martín Sánchez
A
A
D000576:Americium / Q000032:analysis*; D002588:Cesium Radioisotopes / Q000032:analysis*; D004595:Electroplating / Q000379:methods; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D011005:Plutonium / Q000032:analysis*; D011847:Radioactive Fallout / Q000032:analysis; D018788:Radioactive Hazard Release; D012987:Soil / Q000032:analysis; D012990:Soil Pollutants, Radioactive / Q000032:analysis*; D013030:Spain; D013051:Spectrometry, Gamma
D002588:Cesium Radioisotopes; D011847:Radioactive Fallout; D012987:Soil; D012990:Soil Pollutants, Radioactive; D011005:Plutonium; D000576:Americium