HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Sprugel, D. G. Articles by Bartelt, G. E. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by Sprugel, D. G. Articles by Bartelt, G. E. Agricola Articles by Sprugel, D. G. Articles by Bartelt, G. E.

Erosional Removal of Fallout Plutonium from a Large Midwestern Watershed¹

ABSTRACT

The Great Miami River at Sidney, Ohio, drains a 1,401-km² watershed which is generally flat and predominantly agricultural. Samples of river water collected over a wide range of flow and sediment loading conditions showed that the concentrations of ^239,240Pu in filtered water and suspended sediment were fairly constant, with means of 0.15 fCi/liter for water and 14 fCi/g for suspended sediment. Plutonium concentrations in suspended sediment are somewhat higher than plow-layer soil concentrations, probably due to settling of larger soil particles in ponds and backwaters in the upper reaches of the river.

Annual plutonium transport from the watershed by erosion averages 1.2 mCi, or 0.9 pCi/m², which is about 0.05% of the total plutonium in the watershed soil. The primary mechanism for plutonium removal is erosion of small soil particles to which the element is sorbed.

Key Words: plutonium transport • radionuclides • suspended sediment

¹ Contribution from the Ecol. Sci. Sec., Radiol. and Environ. Res. Div., Argonne Natl. Lab., Argonne, IL 60439. Work performed under the auspices of the U.S. Dep. of Energy.

² Assistant Ecologist and Scientific Assistant, respectively, Argonne Natl. Lab., Argonne, Ill.

Received for publication June 1, 1977.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				D.E. Walling Physical hydrology Progress in Physical Geography, March 1, 1979; 3(1): 141 - 150. [PDF]