In the contributed papers session, Wong, Noshkin, and Jokela of Lawrence
Livermore Laboratory demonstrated that data obtained through use of the
MICE samples (Mn O, Impregnated Cartridge Extraction) can be compared in
certain respects with a radiochemical coprecipitation method for the
radiochemical separation of transuranic elements.
The sampler was
developed by Wong to preconcentrate in the field (Enewetak) low-level
plutonium and other radionuclides from fresh and salt waters, with
subsequent plutonium analysis of the Mn O» cartridges,
A schematic for
the collection of water samples is included in their report.
Alpha autoradiography accomplished by Buddemeier, Bierman, and Gatrousis,
Lawrence Livermore Laboratory, with Kodak LR~115, Type II cellulose
nitrate alpha track detection film was studied to determine usefulness
of the film in environmental plutonium soil sample analysis.
Results
indicated that alpha track detectors could be useful in analysis of
amounts and distributions of activity in small samples such as aerosol
filters, specific soil or sediment size fractions, and certain biological
subsamples; for screening samples for limitation of numbers of radiochemical analyses; and for research into the statistical basis for environmental sampling design.
White of Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory discussed the statistical
estimation of expected values of environmental pollutants with lognormal
and gamma distributions.
Tests conducted indicated that the arithmetic
mean provides an unbiased estimate of expected value, and that the
achieved coverage of the confidence interval is greater than 75 percent
for coefficients of variation less than two.
Using barley plants, Wallace, Mueller, and Romney of UCLA investigated
whether varying americium-241 concentrations in yolo loam soil would
cause variance in the uptake and concentration in the plant, and what
effect the addition of chelate would have on any such variance.
Results
indicated that 24/Am in plants was directly proportional to that in soil
at all concentrations with DTPA.
The uptake of americium from soil
decreased slightly (about three times) without DTPA as the soil concentration of 741am was increased tenfold.
G.I. absorption of actinide elements is greater in fasted animals than
in those on regular diets, according to Weiss and Walburg of the Comparative Animal Research Laboratory, University of Tennessee.
Cerium-144
(L1II) chloride was given to fasted and nonfasting mice in efforts to
evaluate differences reported in animal experiments measuring G.I.
absorption.
Weiss and Walburg recommend that better absorption data
would be obtained using animals on regular feed and a more normal gut
transit time for absorption and complexing of most heavy metallic elements.
Bernhardt, Bliss, and Eadie, EPA (Office of Radiation Programs), Las
Vegas, reported on results of EPA samples taken in a project conducted
by Rockwell International; Colorado Department of Health; Jefferson
County (Colo.) Department of Health; and the EPA.
The samples were
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