title: Estimating the impact from Fukushima in Southern Spain by131I and Accelerator Mass Spectrometry detection of129I.
abstract: After the Fukushima accident, large amounts of radionuclides were discharged to the atmosphere. Some of them travelled long distances and were detected in places as far from Japan as Spain a few days after the accident. One of these radionuclides was131I. Its isotope129I (T1/2 = 15.7 × 106 years) was also expected to follow the same pathway. In this work, we present the results for the129I concentration in the same atmospheric samples from Seville (Spain) where131I activity was measured in 2011 by Baeza et al. (2012).129I concentrations in aerosol and gaseous samples showed concentrations in the order of 104 and 105 atoms/m3, typically higher in the gaseous form with respect to the aerosol form. Also129I in rainwater was measured, showing concentrations in the order of 108atoms/L. The results show a very good agreement with the131I profile, showing that, if background from other sources is not relevant, it is possible to estimate the impact of similar events years after them thanks to the sensitivity of techniques like Accelerator Mass Spectrometry.
authors.affiliation: Technische Universität München, Fakultät für Physik, James-Franck-Strasse 1, 85748 Garching, Germany.
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Gómez-Guzmán
authors.affiliation: Centro Nacional de Aceleradores (Universidad de Sevilla, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Junta de Andalucía), Thomas Alva Edison 7, 41092 Seville, Spain; Universidad de Sevilla, Departamento de Física Aplicada I, Escuela Universitaria Politécnica, Virgen de África 7, 41011 Seville, Spain. Electronic address: lguti@us.es.
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: López-Gutiérrez
authors.affiliation: Centro Nacional de Aceleradores (Universidad de Sevilla, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Junta de Andalucía), Thomas Alva Edison 7, 41092 Seville, Spain; Universidad de Sevilla, Departamento de Física Aplicada II, E.T.S. Arquitectura, Av. Reina Mercedes, 2, 41012 Seville, Spain.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: García-Tenorio
authors.affiliation: Centro Nacional de Aceleradores (Universidad de Sevilla, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Junta de Andalucía), Thomas Alva Edison 7, 41092 Seville, Spain.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Agulló
authors.affiliation: Centro Nacional de Aceleradores (Universidad de Sevilla, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Junta de Andalucía), Thomas Alva Edison 7, 41092 Seville, Spain.
authors.forename: J I
authors.initials: JI
authors.lastname: Peruchena
authors.affiliation: Universidad de Sevilla, Departamento de Física Aplicada II, E.T.S. Arquitectura, Av. Reina Mercedes, 2, 41012 Seville, Spain.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Manjón
authors.affiliation: Centro Nacional de Aceleradores (Universidad de Sevilla, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Junta de Andalucía), Thomas Alva Edison 7, 41092 Seville, Spain; Universidad de Sevilla, Departamento de Física Atómica Molecular y Nuclear, Av. Reina Mercedes s/n, Seville, Spain.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: García-León
mesh_terms: D000396:Air Pollutants, Radioactive / Q000032:analysis*; D000398:Air Pollution, Radioactive / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D001272:Atmosphere / Q000737:chemistry; D062406:Fukushima Nuclear Accident; D007457:Iodine Radioisotopes / Q000032:analysis*; D013058:Mass Spectrometry; D011834:Radiation Monitoring; D013030:Spain
chemical_list: D000396:Air Pollutants, Radioactive; D007457:Iodine Radioisotopes
keywords: Accelerator Mass Spectrometry; Environmental radioactivity; Fukushima; Iodine-129