EE sere we teeta RRATE RII Hos A UNITETS Sa eae A MARNE Seen oe AECD-3446 ~106- WATER SAMPLES Water samples were collected and preparedin the field by Pay} J. Analysis for alpha activity was done at the laboratory of the Atomic Energy 4 University of California at Los Angeles, by Kermit H. Larson, Assistant ¢. Alamogordo Section, The technique used in the field to bring back a large samplein a smal} container was to evaporate 3 liters of sea water to about 450 cc. ona hot platy and then pour the hot concentrated sea water into a glass-stoppered 500 mal, The evaporating dish was then washed out with 50 cc. of the same sea water which 5 cc, of technical grade HNO, had been added, It was assumed that the washing with dilute HNO, dissolved only a negligible amount of the ename) tion dish. This technique left almost no precipitated salt in the dish, The activity extracted from the water samples, as such, is not si especially when compared to the amountof alpha activity contained in tap water; at the University of California at Los Angeles Laboratory and from surface seg water from Santa Monica Bay (see Table 3). Also, it is interesting to note tha the alpha activity obtained by using a nitric acid wash on the sample bottles aswe a thorough water rinse was sometimes greater than the sample itself. The problem of absorption by glass of alpha emitters, as well as isot known, but Larson reports that his results indicate that some does absorb. | SUMMARY ..... The 3-liter samples of sea water from Bikini, EEniwetok and Likiepthat were evaporated to 1/2 a liter and then sent to the laboratory at the Univer silf¥ California at Los Angeles for counting did not show significantly greater alphe vity than a sample from Santa Monica Bay and showed less alpha activity thas sample of laboratory tap water. /UNIVIRSITY AD OY TS ce hom! : lf