Spatially resolved isotope analysis of a Chernobyl corium fragment extracted from environmental soil

IF 1.9 3区环境科学与生态学 Q3 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES

Journal of environmental radioactivity Pub Date : 2025-04-24 DOI:10.1016/j.jenvrad.2025.107699

Wolfgang Schulz, Martin Weiss, Manuel Raiwa, Clemens Walther, Laura Leifermann

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Abstract

Micrometer sized particles accounted for a considerable fraction of the radioactivity released into the environment during the Chernobyl accident. In addition, there is a special kind of particles, so called shelter-derived fuel containing material (FCM), that formed as a consequence of the cooling of the reactor melt, and was so far only found inside the reactor building. For the first time, a FCM particle was located in and extracted from soil of a former agricultural field 5 km south-southeast of the former nuclear power plant. Using a combination of energy scanning electron microcopy and dispersive x-ray analysis and Secondary Neutral Mass Spectrometry we found that the particle is comprised of a silicon matrix containing evenly distributed amounts of U, Pu and Am. Embedded in that chemically stable matrix are small inclusions of reactor U of varying chemical composition. We could show this particle type to be largely unaffected by weathering under environmental conditions.

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从环境土壤中提取的切尔诺贝利堆芯碎片的空间分辨同位素分析

在切尔诺贝利事故中释放到环境中的放射性物质中，微米大小的颗粒占了相当大的一部分。此外，还有一种特殊的颗粒，被称为掩体衍生的含燃料物质（FCM），它是反应堆熔体冷却的结果，迄今为止只在反应堆建筑内发现。首次在原核电站东南偏南5公里处的前农田土壤中定位并提取了FCM颗粒。利用能量扫描电子显微镜、色散x射线分析和二次中性质谱相结合的方法，我们发现该颗粒由硅基体组成，其中含有均匀分布的U、Pu和Am。在化学稳定的基质中嵌入了不同化学成分的反应器U的小包裹体。我们可以证明，在环境条件下，这种颗粒类型基本上不受风化的影响。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Journal of environmental radioactivity 环境科学-环境科学

CiteScore

4.70

自引率

13.00%

发文量

209

审稿时长

73 days

期刊介绍： The Journal of Environmental Radioactivity provides a coherent international forum for publication of original research or review papers on any aspect of the occurrence of radioactivity in natural systems. Relevant subject areas range from applications of environmental radionuclides as mechanistic or timescale tracers of natural processes to assessments of the radioecological or radiological effects of ambient radioactivity. Papers deal with naturally occurring nuclides or with those created and released by man through nuclear weapons manufacture and testing, energy production, fuel-cycle technology, etc. Reports on radioactivity in the oceans, sediments, rivers, lakes, groundwaters, soils, atmosphere and all divisions of the biosphere are welcomed, but these should not simply be of a monitoring nature unless the data are particularly innovative.