Biogeochemical factors affecting the presence of 210Po in groundwater

Seiler, Ralph L.; Stillings, Lisa L.; Cutler, Nichole; Salonen, L; Outola, Iisa

doi:10.1016/j.apgeochem.2011.01.011

Cited by 31 publications

(48 citation statements)

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“…210 Po activities exceeding 1 Bq/L have been found in private wells in Florida and Nevada and public supply wells in Louisiana and Maryland ( Seiler et al 2011 ). 210 Po in groundwater is normally < 30 mBq/L because it strongly adsorbs to aquifer materials ( Harada et al 1989 ).…”

Section: Environmental Behavior Of 210 Pomentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Wells with high 210 Po in Florida are typically shallow wells located in the central part of the state ( Harada et al 1989 ) where the ultimate source of the 210 Po is uranium-rich phosphate rock in the aquifers and phosphogypsum waste products from mining operations ( Cherrier et al 1995 ). U concentrations in aquifer sediments near contaminated wells in Nevada range from 1.4 to 4.5 mg/kg ( Seiler et al 2011 ) and are typical of the western United States ( Figure 1 ). U concentrations in sediments near contaminated wells in Maryland and Louisiana have not been described.…”

Section: Environmental Behavior Of 210 Pomentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A comparison of naturally contaminated wells in the United States and Finland ( Seiler et al 2011 ) suggested that, in areas where 238 U and radon are present in the environment, elevated 210 Po activities in groundwater may be found in two distinct groundwater environments, one with oxic or anoxic groundwater with extremely high radon levels, and the other with anoxic, sulfate-reducing groundwater with low hydrogen sulfide concentrations and low-to-high radon levels. In wells in Florida, Maryland, and Nevada, aqueous 210 Pb concentrations were much less than 210 Po concentrations ( Harada et al 1989 ; Outola et al 2008 ; Seiler 2011 ), indicating that the 210 Po was being mobilized from the sediments.…”

Section: Environmental Behavior Of 210 Pomentioning

confidence: 99%

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Occurrence of ²¹⁰ Po and Biological Effects of Low-Level Exposure: The Need for Research

Seiler

2012

Environ Health Perspect

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Background: Polonium-210 (210Po) concentrations that exceed 1 Bq/L in drinking-water supplies have been reported from four widely separated U.S. states where exposure to it went unnoticed for decades. The radionuclide grandparents of 210Po are common in sediments, and segments of the public may be chronically exposed to low levels of 210Po in drinking water or in food products from animals raised in contaminated areas.Objectives: We summarized information on the environmental behavior, biokinetics, and toxicology of 210Po and identified the need for future research.Methods: Potential linkages between environmental exposure to 210Po and human health effects were identified in a literature review.Discussion: 210Po accumulates in the ovaries where it kills primary oocytes at low doses. Because of its radiosensitivity and tendency to concentrate 210Po, the ovary may be the critical organ in determining the lowest injurious dose for 210Po. 210Po also accumulates in the yolk sac of the embryo and in the fetal and placental tissues. Low-level exposure to 210Po may have subtle, long-term biological effects because of its tropism towards reproductive and embryonic and fetal tissues where exposure to a single alpha particle may kill or damage critical cells. 210Po is present in cigarettes and maternal smoking has several effects that appear consistent with the toxicology of 210Po.Conclusions: Much of the important biological and toxicological research on 210Po is more than four decades old. New research is needed to evaluate environmental exposure to 210Po and the biological effects of low-dose exposure to it so that public health officials can develop appropriate mitigation measures where necessary.

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Section: Environmental Behavior Of 210 Pomentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Environmental Behavior Of 210 Pomentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Environmental Behavior Of 210 Pomentioning

confidence: 99%

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Occurrence of ²¹⁰ Po and Biological Effects of Low-Level Exposure: The Need for Research

Seiler

2012

Environ Health Perspect

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“…Since they are living organisms they migrate in the subsurface porous medium, being subject to a complex of biological, physical and chemical processes. Those micro-organisms act as pseudo-colloids, since their surfaces are often negatively charged, thus having the ability to bind and carry radionuclides through the subsurface environment (Johnsson et al, 2008;Luk'yanova et al, 2008;Seiler et al, 2011;Singer, Farges & Brown Jr, 2009;Wilkins et al, 2006;2010).…”

Section: Pseudo-colloidsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Particulate Phases Possibly Conveyed from Nuclear Waste Repositories by Groundwater

Marin¹

2012

Radioactive Waste

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“…210 Pb and 210 Po 210 Pb and 210 Po are widely dispersed in a large variety of natural media because they often mimic the distributions of parental 238 U, 226 Ra, or 222 Rn. Much of the literature on 210 Pb and 210 Po distributions in nature is focused on their concentrations in the atmosphere (e.g., [13]), in oceans (e.g., [14][15][16][17]), rivers (e.g., [18]), lakes (e.g., [19]), groundwaters (e.g., [20][21][22][23]), drinking waters (e.g., [24][25][26]), and soils [27][28][29]. Attention has also been given to mosses and lichens, which efficiently capture atmospheric 210 Pb and 210 Po, peat bogs (also anomalous with respect to 210 Pb and 210 Po), and in the animal and human food chains, e.g., milk or berries, and particularly seafood (e.g., [12,[30][31][32]).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

210Pb and 210Po in Geological and Related Anthropogenic Materials: Implications for Their Mineralogical Distribution in Base Metal Ores

et al. 2018

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Abstract:The distributions of 210 Pb and 210 Po, short half-life products of 238 U decay, in geological and related anthropogenic materials are reviewed, with emphasis on their geochemical behaviours and likely mineral hosts. Concentrations of natural 210 Pb and 210 Po in igneous and related hydrothermal environments are governed by release from crustal reservoirs. 210 Po may undergo volatilisation, inducing disequilibrium in magmatic systems. In sedimentary environments (marine, lacustrine, deltaic and fluvial), as in soils, concentrations of 210 Pb and 210 Po are commonly derived from a combination of natural and anthropogenic sources. Enhanced concentrations of both radionuclides are reported in media from a variety of industrial operations, including uranium mill tailings, waste from phosphoric acid production, oil and gas exploitation and energy production from coals, as well as in residues from the mining and smelting of uranium-bearing copper ores. Although the mineral hosts of the two radionuclides in most solid media are readily defined as those containing parent 238 U and 226 Ra, their distributions in some hydrothermal U-bearing ores and the products of processing those ores are much less well constrained. Much of the present understanding of these radionuclides is based on indirect data rather than direct observation and potential hosts are likely to be diverse, with deportments depending on the local geochemical environment. Some predictions can nevertheless be made based on the geochemical properties of 210 Pb and 210 Po and those of the intermediate products of 238 U decay, including isotopes of Ra and Rn. Alongside all U-bearing minerals, the potential hosts of 210 Pb and 210 Po may include Pb-bearing chalcogenides such as galena, as well as a range of sulphates, carbonates, and Fe-oxides. 210 Pb and 210 Po are also likely to occur as nanoparticles adsorbed onto the surface of other minerals, such as clays, Fe-(hydr)oxides and possibly also carbonates. In rocks, unsupported 210 Pb-and/or 210 Po-bearing nanoparticles may also be present within micro-fractures in minerals and at the interfaces of mineral grains. Despite forming under very limited and special conditions, the local-scale isotopic disequilibrium they infer is highly relevant for understanding their distributions in mineralized rocks and processing products.

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Biogeochemical factors affecting the presence of 210Po in groundwater

Cited by 31 publications

References 49 publications

Occurrence of ²¹⁰ Po and Biological Effects of Low-Level Exposure: The Need for Research

Occurrence of ²¹⁰ Po and Biological Effects of Low-Level Exposure: The Need for Research

Particulate Phases Possibly Conveyed from Nuclear Waste Repositories by Groundwater

210Pb and 210Po in Geological and Related Anthropogenic Materials: Implications for Their Mineralogical Distribution in Base Metal Ores

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Biogeochemical factors affecting the presence of 210Po in groundwater

Cited by 31 publications

References 49 publications

Occurrence of 210 Po and Biological Effects of Low-Level Exposure: The Need for Research

Occurrence of 210 Po and Biological Effects of Low-Level Exposure: The Need for Research

Particulate Phases Possibly Conveyed from Nuclear Waste Repositories by Groundwater

210Pb and 210Po in Geological and Related Anthropogenic Materials: Implications for Their Mineralogical Distribution in Base Metal Ores

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Occurrence of ²¹⁰ Po and Biological Effects of Low-Level Exposure: The Need for Research

Occurrence of ²¹⁰ Po and Biological Effects of Low-Level Exposure: The Need for Research