Plutonium in the Arctic Environment: Plutonium Sources, Speciation and Mobility

Lindis Skipperud

ISBN 10: 3639125630 / ISBN 13: 9783639125634

Published by VDM Verlag Dr. Müller, 2009

204 pages. 8.66x5.91x0.50 inches. In Stock. This item is printed on demand. Seller Inventory # 3639125630

Synopsis:

Over the past 50 years, explosions of nuclear weapons and releases from the nuclear industry have introduced anthropogenic plutonium into the environment. In the Arctic environment, the main source of plutonium is from atmospheric weapons testing, but studies of plutonium in the Kara Sea have shown that other releases have given rise to enhanced local concentrations. Since different plutonium sources are characterised by distinctive plutonium-isotope ratios, evidence of a localised influence can be supported by clear perturbations in the plutonium-isotope ratio fingerprints. To assess long-term consequences when radionuclides are released into the environment, information on the source term speciation, transport and transformation processes and biological uptake is needed. Among artificial radionuclides released to the environment, the transuranium elements are a major concern, due to very long half-lives and their accumulation in bone as well as high radiotoxicity. Plutonium has been produced in greater quantity than other transuranic elements, however, environmental assessments are complicated by the complex environmental behaviour.

About the Author: Dr. Lindis Skipperud Associate professor in nuclear chemistry/analytical chemistry/environmental chemistry at Norwegian University of Life Sciences. She is lead scientist of the Isotope laboratory focusing on radio- and environmental chemistry, speciation and kinetics, radioecology and the use of isotopes to study environmental processes.

Bibliographic Details

Title: Plutonium in the Arctic Environment: ...
Publisher: VDM Verlag Dr. Müller
Publication Date: 2009
Binding: Paperback
Condition: Brand New