Characterisation of the plutonium isotopic composition of a sediment core from Palomares, Spain, by low-energy AMS and alpha-spectrometry

The measurement of plutonium isotopes, 239Pu and 240Pu, at 670 kV on the compact accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) system at the Centro Nacional de Aceleradores (CNA) in Seville, Spain, is now a reality. In this work, we present first Pu AMS results for environmental samples: a sediment core colle...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Chamizo Calvo, Elena, Jiménez Ramos, María del Carmen, Enamorado Báez, Santiago Miguel, García León, Manuel, García-Tenorio García-Balmaseda, Rafael, Más Balbuena, José Luis, Masqué, Pere, Merino, J., Sánchez Cabeza, J. A.
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión aceptada para publicación
Fecha de publicación:2010
País:España
Institución:Universidad de Sevilla (US)
Repositorio:idUS. Depósito de Investigación de la Universidad de Sevilla
OAI Identifier:oai:idus.us.es:11441/156874
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/11441/156874
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nimb.2009.10.151
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:AMS
Plutonium
Palomares
Sediment
Pu-239
Pu-240
CNA
Descripción
Sumario:The measurement of plutonium isotopes, 239Pu and 240Pu, at 670 kV on the compact accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) system at the Centro Nacional de Aceleradores (CNA) in Seville, Spain, is now a reality. In this work, we present first Pu AMS results for environmental samples: a sediment core collected in a submarine canyon in the Mediterranean coast of the Spanish region of Palomares, affected by a nuclear accident in 1966. From the study of the 240Pu/239Pu atomic ratio profile, showing on average levels lower than 11%, we confirm that the weapon-grade plutonium released on land during the accident, with a characteristic 240Pu/239Pu atomic ratio of 5.8%, has found its way into the marine environment. A two-plutonium sources mixture model (Palomares and fallout) is used to elucidate the percentage of the plutonium coming from the accident. As a validation exercise of the Pu AMS measuring technique and in order to obtain the 238Pu/(239+240)Pu activity ratios, samples were also studied by alpha-spectrometry (AS). The obtained AS 239+240Pu activity concentration results fit in with the AMS ones in a wide dynamic range, thus validating the AMS technique.

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