title: Multivariate soft-modeling to predict radiocesium soil-to-plant transfer.
abstract: A multivariate soft-modeling approach based on an exploratory principal component analysis (PCA) followed by a partial least squares regression (PLS) was developed, tested, and validated to estimate radiocesium transfer to grass from readily measurable soil characteristics. A data set with 145 soil samples and 21 soil and plant parameters was used. Samples were soils from various field plots contaminated by the Chernobyl accident (soddy-podzolic and peaty soils), submitted to several agricultural treatments (disking, ploughing, fertilization, and liming). Parameters included soil characteristics and the corresponding radiocesium soil-to-plant transfer factors. PCA of data showed that soil samples were grouped according to the field plots and that they covered a wide range of possible soil-to-plant transfer scenarios. PLS was used to design and build the multivariate prediction model. The soil database was split in two parts: (i) a representative calibration set for training purposes and model building and (ii) a prediction set for external validation and model testing. The regression coefficients of the model confirmed the relevant parametersto describe radiocesium soil-to-plant transfer variation (e.g., phyllosilicate content and NH4+ status), which agreed with previous knowledge on the interaction mechanisms of this radionuclide in soils. The prediction of soil-to-plant transfer was satisfactory with an error of the same order of magnitude as the variability of field replicates.
authors.affiliation: Departament de Química Analítica, Universitat de Barcelona, Martí i Franquès, 1-11, 08028 Barcelona, Spain. annarigol@ub.edu
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rigol
authors.forename: Marta
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Camps
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: De Juan
authors.forename: Gemma
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Rauret
authors.forename: Miquel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Vidal
mesh_terms: D002588:Cesium Radioisotopes / Q000378:metabolism*; D047852:Chernobyl Nuclear Accident; D005544:Forecasting; D016018:Least-Squares Analysis; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D010944:Plants / Q000378:metabolism*; D025341:Principal Component Analysis; D012987:Soil; D012990:Soil Pollutants, Radioactive / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D002588:Cesium Radioisotopes; D012987:Soil; D012990:Soil Pollutants, Radioactive