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233U/236U signature allows to distinguish environmental emissions of civil nuclear industry from weapons fallout.

ABSTRACT: Isotopic ratios of radioactive releases into the environment are useful signatures for contamination source assessment. Uranium is known to behave conservatively in sea water so that a ratio of uranium trace isotopes may serve as a superior oceanographic tracer. Here we present data on the atomic [Formula: see text]U/[Formula: see text]U ratio analyzed in representative environmental samples finding ratios of (0.1-3.7)[Formula: see text]10[Formula: see text]. The ratios detected in compartments of the environment affected by releases of nuclear power production or by weapons fallout differ by one order of magnitude. Significant amounts of [Formula: see text]U were only released in nuclear weapons fallout, either produced by fast neutron reactions or directly by [Formula: see text]U-fueled devices. This makes the [Formula: see text]U/[Formula: see text]U ratio a promising new fingerprint for radioactive emissions. Our findings indicate a higher release of [Formula: see text]U by nuclear weapons tests before the maximum of global fallout in 1963, setting constraints on the design of the nuclear weapons employed.

SUBMITTER: Hain K

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7062840 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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<sup>233</sup>U/<sup>236</sup>U signature allows to distinguish environmental emissions of civil nuclear industry from weapons fallout.

Hain K K Steier P P Froehlich M B MB Golser R R Hou X X Lachner J J Nomura T T Qiao J J Quinto F F Sakaguchi A A

Nature communications 20200309 1

Isotopic ratios of radioactive releases into the environment are useful signatures for contamination source assessment. Uranium is known to behave conservatively in sea water so that a ratio of uranium trace isotopes may serve as a superior oceanographic tracer. Here we present data on the atomic [Formula: see text]U/[Formula: see text]U ratio analyzed in representative environmental samples finding ratios of (0.1-3.7)[Formula: see text]10[Formula: see text]. The ratios detected in compartments ...[more]

PMID: 32152279

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Dataset Information

233U/236U signature allows to distinguish environmental emissions of civil nuclear industry from weapons fallout.

Publications

<sup>233</sup>U/<sup>236</sup>U signature allows to distinguish environmental emissions of civil nuclear industry from weapons fallout.

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