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Radioactive species in sea water

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 December 2011

M. S. Baxter  and
I. G. McKinley
M. S. Baxter
Affiliation:
Department of Chemistry, University of Glasgow
I. G. McKinley
Affiliation:
Department of Chemistry, University of Glasgow
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Synopsis

Radioactive species, in the dissolved state in sea water, can serve to define rates and directions of water movement. The requirements for such applications are that tracer species be soluble, chemically conservative, of half-life compatible with the process timescale under study and have non-uniform inputs. Boundary and point source inputs generate concentration gradients induced by the known-rate kinetics of radioactive decay. Advection-diffusion and box-model treatments are widely used in data interpretation and examples of a range of applications, based on 14C, 222Rn, 228Ra and fallout nuclides, are presented. Reactive radionuclides such as 228Th and 210Pb can, on the other hand, be used to trace the fate of many heavy metals introduced into the marine environment. The release of waste from the nuclear industry provides a very convenient source of tracers for coastal waters. This application is illustrated by several studies of Windscale-derived radiocaesium in Scottish waters.

Type
Research Article
Information
Proceedings of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Section B: Biological Sciences , Volume 76 , Issue 1-3: Current Studies in the Marine Environment , 1978 , pp. 17 - 35
Copyright
Copyright © Royal Society of Edinburgh 1978

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