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TRANSPORT OF LOW-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE SOIL AT DEEP-OCEAN DISPOSAL SITE
Citation:
Bonner, J., C. Hunt, J. Paul, AND V. Bierman, Jr. TRANSPORT OF LOW-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE SOIL AT DEEP-OCEAN DISPOSAL SITE. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C., EPA/600/J-93/189 (NTIS PB93199487).
Description:
Transport studies were conducted to assess ocean disposal of soil contaminated with low-level natural radioisotopes. he experimental approach involved characterization of the soil for parameters affecting transport and fate of radionuclides- Radioactivity was associated with discrete soil particles up to 6,000 um. ross and most individual isotope and element activities were more concentrated on smaller particles. he median size based on gross radio-activity was 125 um, while the median size based on dry mass was 350 um. article-settling velocities measured in a I m settling column ranged up to 8.2 cm/s (median 2.1 cm/s). arge-scale mixed water column experiments (5 m) confirmed that settling would be the dominant verticle transport mechanism for the soil particles. xperimental results were used to calibrate a convective-diffusive transport model, which was applied to a hypothetical ocean disposal site in 4,000 m of water. he model indicated that 95% of the soil and associated radionuclides would impact the bottom sediment within five days and up to 40 km from the disposal point, along the mean current flow.