Assessment, validation and intercomparison of operational models for predicting tritium migration from routine discharges of nuclear power plants: the case of Loire River.
During last decades, a number of projects have been launched to validate models for predicting the behaviour of radioactive substances in the environment. The project of the "Aquatic" working group of the project EMRAS (Environmental Modelling for Radiation Safety) organised by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) was based on the validation and assessment of models for predicting the behaviour of radionuclides in the aquatic ecosystems. The present paper describes a blind test of models aimed at assessing the dispersion of tritium releases in the Loire River (France), on a large domain ( approximately 350km) and on a period of six months, by comparing the results obtained by operational-to-experimental values of tritium concentration at Angers, a city along the Loire River. The common conclusion is that the models used by the different participants namely 1D models and models based on a schematic hydraulic (box models) are reliable tools for tritium transport modelling. Nevertheless, the importance of proper and detailed hydrological data for the appropriate prediction of pollutant migration in water is demonstrated by the example provided during this study.
Goutal
Nicole
N
EDF R&D, Laboratoire National d'Hydraulique et Environnement (LNHE), 6 Quai Watier, 78401 Chatou Cedex, France. nicole.goutal@edf.fr
Luck
Marilyne
M
Boyer
Patrick
P
Monte
Luigi
L
Siclet
Françoise
F
Angeli
Giacomo
G
D005602:France; D005618:Fresh Water; D007220:Industrial Waste; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D055848:Nuclear Power Plants; D014316:Tritium; D014875:Water Pollutants, Radioactive
D007220:Industrial Waste; D014875:Water Pollutants, Radioactive; D014316:Tritium