Journal of environmental radioactivity最新文献

{"title":"Revisiting the historical tritium levels in precipitation in Greece – Preliminary assessment of groundwater transit times","authors":"Ioannis Matiatos ,&nbsp;Paraskevas Tsangaratos ,&nbsp;Lorenzo Copia ,&nbsp;Luis Araguás-Araguás","doi":"10.1016/j.jenvrad.2025.107619","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jenvrad.2025.107619","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The radioactive isotope of hydrogen, known as tritium (³H), is very often used as a dating tool in hydrogeological studies, since it enters the water cycle as part of the water molecule through precipitation. However, the assessment of groundwater transit times and recharge often requires knowing the local historical records of tritium levels in precipitation during the previous seven decades, or the tritium in precipitation (TIP) time series. Here, we compiled all tritium records in precipitation in Greece, with the majority of stations showing sporadic measurements, with the aim of reconstructing a TIP for groundwater dating purposes. The monitoring station of Vienna proved to be more reliable for filling the gaps in the time series than the Ottawa station. Conventional methods to fill the TIP gaps, such as the correlation method (CM), were compared with more advanced machine learning tools, such as the Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN). The comparison showed that the artificial Intelligence Method (AIM) performed best, due to its ability to capture complex nonlinear trends that are usually inherent in real-world data. The preliminary qualitative assessment of groundwater tritium data from Greece, in comparison to the TIP, showed the occurrence of groundwaters of mean transit times ranging from a few years to decades. Better incorporation of groundwater transit times and recharge rates into the study of aquifer systems is essential for developing strategies for sustainable water management in Greece and worldwide.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":15667,"journal":{"name":"Journal of environmental radioactivity","volume":"282 ","pages":"Article 107619"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2025-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143006496","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Long-term transfer of 137Cs in sensitive agricultural environments after the Chornobyl fallout in Sweden","authors":"Mykhailo Vinichuk ,&nbsp;Magnus Simonsson ,&nbsp;Maja Larsson ,&nbsp;Klas Rosén","doi":"10.1016/j.jenvrad.2025.107621","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jenvrad.2025.107621","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In this study, the long-term transfer of ¹³⁷Cs from soil to grass on Swedish farms and fields, heavily contaminated after the 1986 radioactive fallout, was investigated. The study spans over 8–14 years, beginning in June 1986, and covers various soil types and agricultural practices. The transfer of ¹³⁷Cs from soil to grass was highly variable, with transfer factors ranging from 1.0 × 10⁻⁵ to 0.357 m² kg⁻¹. Higher values were observed on fields with sandy loam, loamy sand, and organic soils, and lower values on fields with a high clay content. The transfer of ¹³⁷Cs to grass generally exhibited an exponential decline across the majority of fields over the years. The rate of decrease was most pronounced in clay loam and silty loam soils, while it was least evident in sandy loam, sandy soils, and peat soils. The soil properties and farming practices were more important for ¹³⁷Cs uptake than the initial deposition density. The transfer factor had a negative correlation with soil pH, clay, and fine silt content. No significant relationships were found with other soil variables, such as soil organic matter content and plant available potassium concentration. The median effective half-life of ¹³⁷Cs in the grass was 4.5 years, with a range of 2–18 years. The uptake of ¹³⁷Cs by plants did not correlate with the potassium concentration in grass tissues; however, the activity concentration of ¹³⁷Cs in grass correlated negatively with the potassium content in the plants grown on fields with high deposition levels.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":15667,"journal":{"name":"Journal of environmental radioactivity","volume":"282 ","pages":"Article 107621"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2025-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143039338","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Nuclear accident-derived 129I in several river water, eastern Fukushima, Japan, 2016–2020","authors":"Shinji Ueda ,&nbsp;Hidenao Hasegawa ,&nbsp;Yoshihito Ohtsuka ,&nbsp;Shinya Ochiai","doi":"10.1016/j.jenvrad.2025.107617","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jenvrad.2025.107617","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Radionuclides, including ¹²⁹I, were released into the atmosphere by the Fukushima nuclear power plant accident. We measured the dissolved ¹²⁹I concentration in 11 rivers in eastern Fukushima from 2016 to 2020 to clarify the ¹²⁹I concentration level in river water under base-flow conditions. During the study period, the maximum ¹²⁹I concentration in the river water was 1.6 × 10⁻⁶ Bq L⁻¹ in the Ukedo River in 2016, and the minimum was 1.2 × 10⁻⁷ Bq L⁻¹ in the Uda River in 2017, with a difference of over an order of magnitude between the two. Water samples from the Ukedo, Niida-U, and Nagadoro Rivers in eastern Fukushima were strongly affected ¹²⁹I from the Fukushima accident. In addition, we found a significant correlation between concentration of ¹²⁹I in river water and mean ¹²⁹I contamination density in the catchment. The time-series variation of ¹²⁹I in river water from 2016 to 2020 was small and showed no year-to-year decrease. The ¹²⁹I concentration in each river hardly decreased compared to the ¹³⁷Cs decay-corrected concentration during the observation period, and it was expected that a certain concentration of dissolved ¹²⁹I would continue to flow out over a long period of time.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":15667,"journal":{"name":"Journal of environmental radioactivity","volume":"282 ","pages":"Article 107617"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2025-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142978843","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Validation of a spatial model of background radiation using personal measurements in children","authors":"Christophe L. Folly ,&nbsp;Antonella Mazzei-Abba ,&nbsp;Astrid Coste ,&nbsp;Christian Kreis ,&nbsp;Ben D. Spycher","doi":"10.1016/j.jenvrad.2024.107581","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jenvrad.2024.107581","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Limited knowledge about the prediction accuracy of exposure models hinders the interpretation of results from epidemiological studies on childhood cancer risks associated with exposure to background gamma-radiation.</div></div><div><h3>Objective</h3><div>We aimed to validate a spatial exposure model that we recently developed for Switzerland.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>We used individual exposure measurements conducted with D-Shuttle dosimeters by 149 children throughout the country. We ran linear regression models fitting the measured exposure against predictions from the newly developed model, and compared results with the predictions from an earlier model. We further used variograms to investigate the spatial correlation of estimation errors.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>The prediction accuracy of the newly developed exposure model was modest (R² = 0.2), but better than the earlier model (R² = 0.13). Prediction errors revealed weak spatial correlation.</div></div><div><h3>Discussion</h3><div>Although the new exposure model marks an improvement, the modest prediction accuracy and the remaining spatial correlation of errors show room for further improvement. Our study highlights the need for validation of exposure models for background gamma-radiation used in epidemiological studies.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":15667,"journal":{"name":"Journal of environmental radioactivity","volume":"281 ","pages":"Article 107581"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142769349","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Radon exhalation rate prediction and early warning model based on VMD-GRU and similar day analysis","authors":"Shijie Fang ,&nbsp;Yifan Chen ,&nbsp;Xianwei Wu ,&nbsp;Nuo Zhao ,&nbsp;Yong Liu (Prof)","doi":"10.1016/j.jenvrad.2024.107593","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jenvrad.2024.107593","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>To improve the safety and reliability of radon exhalation rate monitoring systems, this study introduces an early warning method that integrates a VMD-GRU prediction model with a similar day analysis. Initially, radon exhalation rate data are decomposed into components with different informational content using the Variational Mode Decomposition (VMD) algorithm. Each component is forecasted by using the Gated Recurrent Unit (GRU) algorithm, and these forecasts are aggregated to estimate the overall radon exhalation rate. The effectiveness of the VMD-GRU model is validated through comparisons with ELMAN, LSTM, GRU,VMD-ELMAN and VMD-LSTM models. Finally, by combining the VMD-GRU model's outcomes with the similar day analysis, the system performs real-time monitoring and anomaly detection of radon exhalation rates. The results demonstrate that the proposed model effectively identifies and early warnings to abnormal radon fluctuations, significantly enhancing the precision of anomaly early warnings and providing robust decision support for radon monitoring and control, thus paving new paths for similar early warning systems.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":15667,"journal":{"name":"Journal of environmental radioactivity","volume":"281 ","pages":"Article 107593"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142769348","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Corrigendum to “Geant4 Monte Carlo simulation of human exposure to indoor 222Rn from building materials” [J. Environ. Radioact. 280 (2024) 107562]","authors":"Felix Haman ,&nbsp;Cebastien Joel Guembou Shouop ,&nbsp;Dorine Flore Tiomene ,&nbsp;Daniel Bongue ,&nbsp;Patricia-Laurelle Degbe ,&nbsp;Eric Jilbert Nguelem Mekongtso ,&nbsp;Maurice Ndontchueng Moyo ,&nbsp;Moïse Godfroy Kwato Njock","doi":"10.1016/j.jenvrad.2024.107569","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jenvrad.2024.107569","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":15667,"journal":{"name":"Journal of environmental radioactivity","volume":"280 ","pages":"Article 107569"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142621834","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Characteristics of radon transport and optimization of ventilation parameters in large-scale underground cavern","authors":"Lingyu Li ,&nbsp;Chuanqing Zhang ,&nbsp;Fanjie Yang ,&nbsp;Zhi Fang","doi":"10.1016/j.jenvrad.2024.107577","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jenvrad.2024.107577","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Radon penetrates into the underground caverns through the pores/fissures of the surrounding rock, resulting in high radon concentration area and endangering the health of construction personnel. The on-site monitoring of radon concentration in the underground powerhouse of Tuoba Hydropower Station is conducted in order to study the radon concentration level. The radon transport during the construction period of underground powerhouse under forced ventilation is established by Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) numerical simulation method. Furthermore, the distribution characteristics and long-term evolution law of radon concentration in underground powerhouse are revealed, and reasonable ventilation optimization measures are put forward and the results show that: (1) Blasting promotes the increase of radon concentration, while forced ventilation accelerates radon transport. (2) The airflow field along the axis is divided into a vortex distribution zone, a vortex influence zone and stable regions. (3) The radon transport includes both migration and diffusion processes based on forced ventilation. (4) The radon concentration decreases with the increase of height, while exhibits low concentration in the middle and high concentration on both sides at the same height. (5) Compared with forced ventilation, the combined ventilation can improve the ventilation efficiency and shorten the radon transport time. The research results can provide a scientific basis for the safety analysis and evaluation of deep engineering environment.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":15667,"journal":{"name":"Journal of environmental radioactivity","volume":"281 ","pages":"Article 107577"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-11-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142757722","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Mapping the exposure to outdoor radon in the German population","authors":"Eric Petermann,&nbsp;Bernd Hoffmann","doi":"10.1016/j.jenvrad.2024.107583","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jenvrad.2024.107583","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Introduction</h3><div>Data on outdoor radon are generally scarce compared to indoor radon. However, knowledge of the spatial distribution of outdoor radon is necessary to estimate the overall exposure of the population to radon, it supports the prediction of indoor radon and characterizes the natural radon background. Germany has a comprehensive dataset on long-term outdoor radon concentration and the equilibrium factor at national level, which allowed to produce what is probably the only spatially continuous outdoor radon map at national level so far.</div></div><div><h3>Data</h3><div>In this study, outdoor radon concentration measurement data (n = 172) and equilibrium factors (n = 25) from a national survey from 2003 to 2006 were reanalyzed using state-of-the-art machine learning routines. Spatially comprehensive maps of distance to the sea, radon concentration in soil, sand content in topsoil and a terrain-based wind exposure index are used as predictors.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>Quantile regression forest was used to map the conditional distribution of outdoor radon concentration at 500 m grid resolution. The equilibrium factor was mapped using a linear regression model. Both maps were combined to derive the equivalent outdoor radon equilibrium concentration. Population weighting of the results was achieved by explicitly accounting for the population distribution using a probabilistic sampling procedure from the estimated conditional distributions.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>The arithmetic mean and the interquartile range (25th to 75th percentile) for the population-weighted outdoor radon concentration for Germany are 9.3 Bq/m³ and 5.8 Bq/m³ to 11.2 Bq/m³, respectively. The mean equilibrium factor is 0.49. The arithmetic mean and the interquartile range (25th to 75th percentile) for the population-weighted outdoor radon equilibrium equivalent concentration are 4.7 Bq/m³ and 2.7 Bq/m³ to 5.9 Bq/m³ respectively. The estimated inhalation dose due to outdoor exposure to radon is 0.056 mSv/a (arithmetic mean), with less than 10 % of the population exceeding a value of 0.1 mSv/a. The unavoidable inhalation dose due to radon exposure (outdoors plus indoors) in Germany is estimated at an arithmetic mean of 0.37 mSv/a. The spatial distribution of radon outdoors is mainly determined by the distance to the sea. The predictors radon concentration in soil, sand in topsoil and wind exposure still have a significant influence, especially at local to regional level.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>Knowledge about the spatial distribution of outdoor radon and its local variability for Germany was improved using a modern regression technique and relevant predictive information. The results confirm a low outdoor radon concentration with a small contribution to the effective dose received by the population from outdoor radon exposure.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":15667,"journal":{"name":"Journal of environmental radioactivity","volume":"281 ","pages":"Article 107583"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-11-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142743014","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Disequilibrium in natural decay series in samples from Czech water treatment plants: Uranium, radium and thorium isotopes determination","authors":"Tereza Doksanská,&nbsp;Alena Kelnarová","doi":"10.1016/j.jenvrad.2024.107580","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jenvrad.2024.107580","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In the Czech Republic, underground or mixed source water treatment plants are classified as the workplaces with possible increased exposure from a natural source of radiation. When releasing waste materials or residues from these NORM workplaces into the environment, the content of natural radionuclides is measured and compared with the clearance levels established by Czech legislation. The content of natural radionuclides in solid samples is determined primarily by high-resolution gamma-ray spectrometry. Six radionuclides, ²³⁸U, ²²⁸Th, ²²⁶Ra, ²²⁸Ra, ²¹⁰Pb, ⁴⁰K, are measured directly or by their measurable decay products (assuming equilibrium), the activity concentration of the other four radionuclides, ²³⁴U, ²³⁰Th, ²¹⁰Po, ²³²Th is conservatively estimated. The study is focused on mapping the properties of NORM arising from the treatment of groundwater and, based on the real samples measurement, verification of new proposed assessment approach. It was tested whether the knowledge of the content of natural radionuclides in water can be practically used to estimate the content in NORM. Samples of water, filter material or sludge were taken from 16 different water treatment plants. Combination of gamma-ray spectrometry and radiochemical methods were applied to determine the content of radionuclides ²³⁴U, ²³⁸U, ²²⁶Ra, ²²⁸Ra, ²²⁸Th, ²³⁰Th and ²³²Th in solid NORM, and radionuclides ²³⁴U, ²³⁸U, ²²⁶Ra, ²²⁸Ra in water. Based on the results the proposed modification of the assessment was verified.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":15667,"journal":{"name":"Journal of environmental radioactivity","volume":"281 ","pages":"Article 107580"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-11-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142699427","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Atmospheric 14CH4, 14CO2 and 37Ar measurements around a Swiss pressurized water reactor during an annual revision period","authors":"Christophe Espic ,&nbsp;Thomas Laemmel ,&nbsp;Stephan Henne ,&nbsp;Roland Purtschert ,&nbsp;Sönke Szidat","doi":"10.1016/j.jenvrad.2024.107576","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jenvrad.2024.107576","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Since the 1980s, radiocarbon (¹⁴C) has gained attention as a valuable tool to quantify the amount of fossil and non-fossil emissions of CO₂ and CH₄ in the atmosphere. Since the 1970s, however, important ¹⁴C emissions in the atmosphere also occur through the operation of nuclear power plants. The limited knowledge about these emissions challenges the use of ¹⁴C as a universal source apportionment tool. Depending on the reactor type, ¹⁴C is emitted in different forms; in particular, pressurized water reactors emit ¹⁴C as a mixture of ¹⁴CH₄ and ¹⁴CO₂. However, few atmospheric ¹⁴C measurements close to nuclear power plants are available, which mostly address ¹⁴CO₂ emissions. Argon-37 (³⁷Ar) can also be produced in nuclear reactors; however, its atmospheric measurement is challenging, resulting in limited available data. In this study, we sampled ambient air during 20–75 min into 18 individual bags around the pressurized water reactor in Gösgen, Switzerland, at the beginning of the annual revision period in 2019, when ¹⁴C and ³⁷Ar emissions can be expected due to the depressurization of the reactor. These samples were analyzed for ¹⁴CH₄, ¹⁴CO₂ and partly for ³⁷Ar. About 1 km downwind of the stack, we found background-corrected activities up to 1900, 370, and 93 mBq m⁻³ respectively. Considering corresponding background activities of 0.3, 48 and 2 mBq m⁻³ for ¹⁴CH₄, ¹⁴CO₂, and ³⁷Ar, this represents an excess of about 6300, 7.4, and 47 times, respectively. Using an atmospheric dispersion model, we satisfactorily simulated the ¹⁴CH₄ and ¹⁴CO₂ activities in the surroundings of the reactor during this event. Our measurements emphasize the importance of nuclear power plants in the interpretation of atmospheric ¹⁴C measurements and show that pressurized water reactors represent a serious limitation in the use of ¹⁴C for source apportionment of CH₄ sources. Our results also provide insights into the approximate magnitude of civilian ³⁷Ar emissions from nuclear facilities specifically during maintenance operations.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":15667,"journal":{"name":"Journal of environmental radioactivity","volume":"281 ","pages":"Article 107576"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-11-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142699426","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}