Processes affecting long-term changes in <Superscript>137</Superscript>Cs concentration in surface sediments off Fukushima

Temporal changes in cesium-137 (¹³⁷Cs) concentrations in the surface (0–10 cm) layer of seabed sediment were quantified from continuous observation data at 71 stations within a 150-km radius of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, and the primary processes affecting temporal changes were identified. From March 2011 to the end of 2015, about 80% of the initially deposited ¹³⁷Cs in the surface sediment in the coastal region (bottom depth ≤100 m) region has dissipated (radioactive decay is not included). Such a remarkable change in the ¹³⁷Cs concentration was not observed in the offshore (>100 m) region. This paper focuses on the following three processes that affected the decrease in the ¹³⁷Cs concentrations, and assesses their relative importance; (1) resuspension and transport of ¹³⁷Cs-bound sediment, (2) desorption of ¹³⁷Cs from the sediment, and (3) dilution of ¹³⁷Cs by vertical mixing of sediment. Consequently, it was estimated that the first two processes together have potentially contributed to reduce the ¹³⁷Cs inventory in the top 10 cm of the coastal region by at most 35%. Furthermore, by applying a pulse input sediment mixing model to the observed vertical distribution of sedimentary ¹³⁷Cs, it was also estimated that more than 43% of the ¹³⁷Cs in the surface sediment was transported to deeper sediment layers by vertical mixing of the sediment. This indicates that the decrease of ¹³⁷Cs concentrations in coastal sediments was mainly affected by mixing of ¹³⁷Cs-bound surface sediment with less contaminated sediment in the deeper layers.     

Spatial variation in low-level <Superscript>134</Superscript>Cs in the coastal sediments off central Honshu in the Sea of Japan: implications for delivery,migration, and redistribution patterns

In 2014 and 2015, we examined the spatial distribution of cesium-134 (half-life: 2.06 years) from the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant (FDNPP) in marine sediments within coastal–basin areas (water depths of 40–520 m) off central Honshu Island (the main island of Japan) in the Sea of Japan. The ¹³⁴Cs concentrations in both the surface sediment (0–1 cm depth) and whole-core inventory exhibited wide variations, and were highest at the site closest to the Agano River Estuary area (6.7 Bq/kg-dry and 886 Bq/m², respectively). This indicates that ¹³⁴Cs in coastal areas was delivered by riverine suspended solids (SS). Given the spatial variation in ¹³⁴Cs concentrations, we believe that ¹³⁴Cs partially migrated northeastward within ~50 km along Honshu Island (at water depths shallower than ~140 m), and southwestward, including the Sado Basin area. This is predominantly attributable to the transport of SS by bottom currents and unsteady downward delivery onto the steep slopes of the basin. The total amount of ¹³⁴Cs in the study area in 2014 was estimated at approximately 0.6 TBq (decay-corrected to March 11, 2011, date of FDNPP accident).     

Activity Concentrations and Fluxes of Radiocesium in the Southern Baltic Sea

The activity concentrations of dissolved¹³⁷Cs have been determined in the water column and¹³⁷Cs and¹³⁴Cs in the sediments and the sediment porewaters of the southern Baltic Sea. The mean activity concentration of dissolved¹³⁷Cs in the Gdansk Deep declined from 109 Bq m⁻³in June 1986 to 61 Bq m⁻³in 1999. In sediments, the activity concentrations of¹³⁷Cs (33-231 Bq kg⁻¹) were highest in muds and the activity concentrations of¹³⁴Cs were about 6% of the total Cs activity. The Chernobyl contribution to¹³⁷Cs activity was between 43% and 77%. The porewater activity concentrations of¹³⁷Cs in muddy sediments were in the range 71 to 3900 Bq m⁻³and were higher than those in the overlying seawater. The diffusive flux of dissolved¹³⁷Cs from the muddy sediments was estimated in the range 5 to 480 Bq m⁻²year⁻¹. The flux of¹³⁷Cs from sediment porewaters of the southern Baltic Sea was about 45% of the total, including fluxes of¹³⁷Cs from wet and dry atmospheric deposition and the fluvial inputs. The results were used to elucidate the rate of recovery of the sediments and the waters of the southern Baltic from Chernobyl-derived¹³⁷Cs.     

Horizontal and vertical distributions of <Superscript>137</Superscript>Cs in seabed sediments around the river mouth near Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant

Investigations including a bathymetric survey, sonic prospecting, and vibrocoring were performed to understand the horizontal and vertical distribution of ¹³⁷Cs in seabed sediments in shallow seas with depths less than 30 m near the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. Especially, features of ¹³⁷Cs distributions in deeper sections of the seabed sediments were studied to evaluate the vertical heterogeneity of ¹³⁷Cs distribution in the seabed sediments in shallow seas. The distribution area of the seabed sediments was less than half of the investigation area, and the locations of the seabed sediments were divided into flat and terrace-like seafloors based on their topographical features. The thicknesses of the seabed sediment layers were mostly <2 m. The ¹³⁷Cs inventories in the seabed sediments varied from 13 ± 1 to 3,510 ± 26 kBq m^?2, and continuous distributions of ¹³⁷Cs at depths greater than 81 cm were observed. The ¹³⁷Cs distributions were not uniform; however, the ¹³⁷Cs inventories tended to be larger near the base of the steeper ascending slopes than in the terrace-like seafloors themselves. Based on the relationship between the ¹³⁷Cs inventories and mean shear stress, features of the seafloor topography were inferred to be significant control factors governing the horizontal and vertical distribution of ¹³⁷Cs in the seabed sediments. Rapid changes and multiple peaks in the vertical profile of the ¹³⁷Cs distributions suggest that they are related to pulse input caused by heavy-rain events. Change in the ¹³⁷Cs inventories with depth in this study are larger than those reported in previous studies, indicating earlier results of ¹³⁷Cs inventories per unit in seabed sediments in shallow seas, especially near the river mouth, which drains a radiologically highly-contaminated basin, were underestimated.     

Sedimentation and mixing rates of radionuclides in Barents Sea sediments off Novaya Zemlya

Radionuclide measurements have been conducted on sediment cores collected in 1992 in the south-eastern region of the Barents Sea, known as the Pechora Sea. Cesium-137 and ^239,24OPu activities in surface sediments are generally less than 30 Bq/kg, with the highest levels being measured in sediments off the southwestern coastline of the island of Novaya Zemlya. High correlations between both ¹³⁷Cs and ^239,24OPu and the concentration of fine (< 63 μm) particles in surface sediments indicate that much of the variance in radionuclide concentrations throughout the Pechora Sea can be explained by particle size fractionation. However, elevated activities of ¹³⁷Cs (138 Bq/kg), ⁶⁰Co (92 Bq/kg), ²⁴¹Am (433 Bq/kg), and especially ^239,24OPu (8.47 × 103 Bq/kg) were measured in one surface sediment sample from the fjord of Chernaya Bay on the southern coast of Novaya Zemlya. The source of radioactive contamination is two underwater nuclear tests conducted in Chernaya Bay in 1955 and 1957.The ²³⁸Pu/^239,240Vu activity ratio of 0.0245 in Chernaya Bay is equivalent to values measured in global fallout. The ²⁴⁰Pu/²³⁹Pu atom ratio (0.0304), measured by mass spectrometry, is much lower than values (0.18) typical of global fallout, but is consistent with ratios measured for fallout from the early (1951–1955) series of weapons tests at the Nevada Test Site. The timing of the Chernaya Bay source term, estimated from the ²⁴¹Am/²⁴¹Pu ratio, is consistent with the timing of the 1955 and 1957 underwater nuclear tests. Relatively low initial yields of ²⁴¹Pu (²⁴¹Pu/²³⁹Pu atom RATIO = 0.00 123) in these tests have resulted in relatively low ²⁴¹Am/^239,240Pu activity ratios (0.05) in recent sediments in Chernaya Bay.Radionuclide tracer profiles in cores from the Pechora Sea can be simulated using a two-layer biodiffusion model with rapid, near-homogeneous mixing in the surface mixed layer and reduced mixing in the deep layer. Lead-210 profiles are consistent with a wide range of sedimentation and mixing rates in the deep sediment layer. However, the ¹³7Cs and ^239,240Pu results further constrain the model parameters and indicate that the downward transport of radionuclides in the sediments is governed primarily by sediment mixing, with sediment burial playing a secondary role.     

福岛核事故泄漏入海的137Cs长期输运的数值研究

The Fukushima nuclear accident in 2011 released large amounts of radionuclides, including ~(137)Cs, into the Pacific Ocean. A quasi-global ocean radioactive transport model with horizontal grid spacing of 0.5°×0.5° and 21 vertical layers was thereafter established to study the long-term transport of the Fukushima-derived ~(137)Cs in the ocean.The simulation shows that the plume of ~(137)Cs would be rapidly transported eastward alongside the Kuroshio Current and its extensions. Contaminated waters with concentrations lower than 2 Bq/m3 would reach the west coast of North America 4 or 5 years after the accident. The ~(137)Cs tends to be carried, despite its very low concentration, into the Indian and South Pacific Oceans by 2016 via various branches of ocean currents.Meanwhile, the ~(137)Cs concentrations in the western part of the North Pacific Ocean decrease rapidly with time. Up to now the highly contaminated waters have remained in the upper 400 m, showing no evidence of significant penetration to deeper layers.     

Numerical experiment for strontium-90 and cesium-137 in the Japan Sea

A numerical experiment is carried out to reproduce distribution of concentration of ⁹⁰Sr and ¹³⁷Cs, estimate their total amount and verify their source in the Japan Sea. Model results are in good agreement with observational findings in the Japan Sea expeditions between 1997 and 2002 by the Japan Atomic Energy Agency. Vertical profiles of the concentration of ⁹⁰Sr and ¹³⁷Cs show exponential decreases with depth from the sea surface to the sea bottom. From the model and observational results, it is suggested that the concentration of ⁹⁰Sr and ¹³⁷Cs in the surface layer is approximately in the range of 1.0–1.5 Bq/m³ and 2.0–2.5 Bq/m3, respectively. On the other hand, it is found that the concentration in the intermediate and deep layer is higher than that observed in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, suggesting active winter convection in the Japan Sea. The total amount of ⁹⁰Sr and ¹³⁷Cs in the seawater is evaluated to be 1.34 × 10¹⁵ Bq and 2.02 × 10¹⁵ Bq, respectively, in the numerical experiment, which demonstrates an estimation by observational data obtained in the Japan Sea expeditions. The total amount of ⁹⁰Sr and ¹³⁷Cs changed during the second half of 20th century corresponding to deposition at the sea surface with the maximums of 4.86 × 10¹⁵ Bq for ⁹⁰Sr and 7.33 × 10¹⁵ Bq for ¹³⁷Cs, respectively, in the mid-1960s. The numerical experiment suggests that the main source of ⁹⁰Sr and ¹³⁷Cs has been global fallout, although there have been some potential sources in the Japan Sea.     

Plutonium and cesium radionuclides in sediments of the Savannah River estuary

A study was made of the ²³⁹Pu, ²⁴⁰Pu, ²³⁸Pu and ¹³⁷Cs concentrations in tidal marsh sediments of the Savannah River estuary. Tidal marshes are identified as special locations for plutonium deposition because of the high biological productivity and relative stability of sediments as compared to channel sediments. The ^239,240Pu deposition averaged 3·2 mCi km⁻², which is higher than land-based fallout values of about 2 mCi km⁻². The ^239,240Pu to ¹³⁷Cs ratio was about three times higher than fallout deposition estimates, indicating a more rapid desorption of ¹³⁷Cs from sediment in the saline waters of the area.     

Distribution of gamma-ray radionuclides in surface sediments of the Kongsfjorden,Arctic: Implications for sediment provenance

The Kongsfjorden is highly sensitive region to climate variability, however, the study of gamma-ray radionuclides in related areas is relatively scarce. In this study, the grain size, total organic carbon(TOC), 13 Corg isotopes, and specific activities of seven gamma nuclides were analysed in surface sediments of the Kongsfjorden in the Arctic during the summer of 2017. The specific activities of 210 Pbex, 137 Cs, 238 U, 226 Ra, 228 Ra, 228 Th, and 40 K were 12–256 Bq/kg, 0–3.8 Bq/kg, 25–42 Bq/k...     

224,223Ra和137Cs在吕宋海峡及周边海域的分布以及其对“彩虹”台风的响应

本文报道2015年9月和2016年5月期间天然放射性核素²²⁴Ra和²²³Ra在吕宋海峡及周边海域表层和垂向水体的分布特征。为理解日本福岛核事故的影响,本文亦分析研究区域内人工放射性核素¹³⁷Cs的分布特征。结果表明,^224,223Ra和¹³⁷Cs比活度水平均处于我国南海海洋天然放射性本底变化范围之内。²²⁴Ra在吕宋海峡以西南海北部海域比活度较高,在吕宋海峡以东菲律宾海域比活度较低。¹³⁷Cs没有明显的分布趋势。基于三站位（LS3,LS5和LS8）²²⁴Ra、¹³⁷Cs以及温盐的垂向分布特征,本文揭示²²⁴Ra和¹³⁷Cs在热带表层水、次表层水和中-深层水中比活度水平和梯度变化的差异特征。彩虹台风事件扭转了整个吕宋海峡及周边海域的海流循环过程。大量以低水平²²⁴Ra为特征的西太平洋海水涌入南海,降低水体²²⁴Ra比活度水平。但是,西太平洋和南海北部海域水体¹³⁷Cs比活度水平没有明显差异,台风导致的海流变化对水体¹³⁷Cs比活度没有明显影响。     

Dispersion and accumulation of radionuclides in sediment of Urazoko Bay (I)

Contents of⁹⁰Sr,¹³⁷Cs and⁶⁰Co in surface sediments were investigated in and around Urazoko Bay, Fukui Prefecture, where a nuclear power plant has been operating since 1969 and the waste effluent has been released into the sea. The main source of⁹⁰Sr and¹³⁷Cs was recognized to be radioactive fallout, whereas⁶⁰Co was considered to originate from the nuclear power plant. Using the¹³⁷Cs concentration as an indicator of sorption capacity of the sediment, the behaviour of⁶⁰Co was investigated. No seasonal variation was observed in the distribution pattern of⁶⁰Co/¹³⁷Cs ratio and the retention of the heavy initial discharge in 1969 was considered to dominate the radionuclide level in the sediment. Correlation of⁶⁰Co/¹³⁷Cs ratio in the sediment and the distance from the discharge outlet was expressed by a simple exponential function of the distance. It was suggested that the contamination is spreading out gradually to the outer region of Urazoko Bay.     

Distribution and inventories of 90Sr, 137Cs, 241Am and Pu isotopes in sediments of the Northwest Pacific Ocean

Bottom sediments collected in the Northwest (NW) Pacific Ocean in 1997 were analysed for ⁹⁰Sr, ¹³⁷Cs, ^239,240Pu and ²⁴¹Am contents to determine their distribution patterns, inventories and sources. Enhanced inventories of ^239,240Pu and ²⁴¹Am were observed in the latitudinal belts of 10–20°N and 30–40°N, which correspond to major areas of local (tropospheric) and global (stratospheric) fallout (with a contribution from local fallout), respectively. The sediment inventory of ^239,240Pu near the Bikini Atoll exceeded its overlying water inventory, however, in the mid-latitudes, more than 70% of ^239,240Pu still remains in the water column. ²⁴¹Am inventories in sediments exceeded that of the water column for the entire NW Pacific Ocean. Higher ¹³⁷Cs and ⁹⁰Sr sediment inventories in the latitudinal belt of 30–40°N are due to global fallout, and they account for about 10% and less than 5% of the water column inventories, respectively. The observed activity ratios of ¹³⁷Cs/⁹⁰Sr, ²³⁸Pu/^239,240Pu and ²⁴¹Am/^239,240Pu in sediment were at some stations higher than the global fallout ratios due to contributions from local fallout and due to specific processes in the water column. Two end-member mixing model based on the ²⁴⁰Pu/²³⁹Pu atom ratios observed in global and local fallout yielded ∼60% contribution of the local fallout in the bottom sediments near the Bikini Atoll. The upward decrease in the ²⁴⁰Pu/²³⁹Pu atom ratios in the sediment column indicates a decrease in the contribution of local fallout to the Pu inventory with time. ²⁴¹Am and ²⁴¹Pu dating of sediment layers was utilized to explain a hiatus in sediment accumulation in the deep seafloor.     

Meiobenthic Organisms as Indicators of Mixing Processes in the Baltic Surface Sediments*

Abstract. Two sediment cores were collected in the southern Baltic Sea and sliced into 1.0cm-thick layers. Sediments of each layer were analysed for activities of ²¹⁰Pb, ¹³⁷Cs, ¹³⁴Cs and for the density of meiobenthic organisms (meiofauna). Zones with the rapid mixing occur in the uppermost layers (0–3 cm) of the cores based on ^I34Cs profiles. The extent and density of meiofauna confirmed the rapid mixing and revealed layers with slow mixing (4–8 cm). Sedimentation rates were derived from ²¹⁰Pb profiles below the mixing zones (1.21 and 1.72 mm a-^I) and were confumed by ¹³⁷Cs distribution. Of twenty-one major meiofauna taxa commonly found in the Baltic sediments, three were present in the cores.     

南海东北部表层沉积物天然放射性核素与137Cs

用HPGeγ谱仪测定了南海东北部表层沉积物中的放射性核素.结果给出7种核素的平均比活度分别为40K:538Bq/kg,210Pb:116Bq/kg,226Ra:27.7Bq/kg,228Ra:4.49Bq/kg,228Th:42.0Bq/kg,238U:35.4Bq/kg和137Cs:1.16Bq/kg,210Pb的比活度随离岸距离增大,226Ra比活度随离岸距离没有明显变化,其余核素比活度随离岸距离减小.与对我国近海其他海域报道的沉积物放射性核素含量相比,40K和137Cs稍低于其他海域,其余核素为中等水平.     

Pb and Cs in sediments from Sagami Bay, Japan: sedimentation rates and inventories

Profiles of the radioisotopes ²¹⁰Pb and ¹³⁷Cs were determined in 15 sediment cores collected from Sagami Bay, Japan. The activities of ²¹⁰Pb_ex (unsupported) in core top sediments increased with water depth from 25 dpm g⁻¹ on the upper continental slope off the mouth of Tokyo Bay to an average of 283 dpm g⁻¹ at the deep-sea station SB. The high ²¹⁰Pb trapping efficiency of settling particles expected from the results of the sediment trap experiment near the SB site suggests that effective ²¹⁰Pb enrichment in surface sediments may occur during resuspension and lateral transportation of particles via the benthic nepheloid layer on the continental slope. In several cores, ¹³⁷Cs profiles showed an increase, a distinct peak, and then a decrease to an undetectable level downcore. These profiles can be compared with the temporal change of bomb-produced ¹³⁷Cs fallout.The mean sedimentation rates estimated by the ²¹⁰Pb_ex inventory method, rather than using ²¹⁰Pb_ex profiles, ranged from 0.06 g cm⁻² y⁻¹ to 0.14 g cm⁻² y⁻¹. The average value of the rates in SB cores was calculated to be 0.11 g cm⁻² y⁻¹, which was similar to that calculated under the assumption that the age of the ¹³⁷Cs peak corresponds to its maximum fallout year in 1963.Although ¹³⁷Cs inventories represented one tenth of the anthropogenic fallout of ¹³⁷Cs until 1997, they correlated with the increase in ²¹⁰Pb_ex inventory. This suggests that the scavenging of refractory ¹³⁷Cs as well as ²¹⁰Pb by settling particles in the water column can lead to the formation of a time marker layer even in deep-sea sediment core, such as at the SB site.     

Recent volumetric changes in salt marsh soils

Salt marsh sediment volume decreases from organic decomposition, compaction of solids, and de-watering, and each of these processes may change with age. Variability in the vertical accretion rate within the upper 2 m was determined by assembling results from concurrent application of the ¹³⁷Cs and ²¹⁰Pb dating techniques used to estimate sediment age since 1963/1964, and 0 to ca 100+ years before present (yBP), respectively. The relationship between ²¹⁰Pb and the ¹³⁷Cs dated accretion rates (Sed₂₁₀ and Sed₁₃₇, respectively) was linear for 45 salt marsh and mangrove environments. Sed₂₁₀ averaged 75% of Sed₁₃₇ suggesting that vertical accretion over the last 100+ years is driven by soil organic matter accumulation, as shown for the pre ¹³⁷Cs dated horizon. The ratio of Sed₂₁₀/Sed₁₃₇ declines with increasing mineral content. A linear multiple regression equation that includes bulk density and Sed₁₃₇ to predict Sed₂₁₀ described 97% of the variance in Sed₂₁₀. Sediments from Connecticut, Delaware and Louisiana coastal environments dated with ¹⁴C indicate a relatively constant sediment accretion rate of 0.13 cm year⁻¹ for 1000–7000 yBP, which occurs within 2 m of today's marsh surface and equals modern sea level rise rates. Soil subsidence is not shown to be distinctly different in these vastly different coastal settings. The major reason why the Sed₁₃₇ measurements indicate higher accretion rates than do the Sed₂₁₀ measurements is because the former apply to younger sediments where the effects of root growth and decomposition are greater than in the latter. The most intense rates of change in soil volume in organic-rich salt marshes sediments is, therefore, neither in deep or old sediments (>4 m; >1000 years), but within the first several hundreds of years after accumulation. The average changes in organic and inorganic constituents downcore are nearly equal for 58 dated sediment cores from the northern Gulf of Mexico. These parallel changes downcore are best described as resulting from compaction, rather than from organic matter decomposition. Thus most of the volumetric changes in these salt marsh sediments occurs in the upper 2 m, and declines quickly with depth. Extrapolation forwards or backwards, using results from the ²¹⁰Pb and the ¹³⁷Cs dating technique appear to be warranted for the types of samples from the environments described here.     

冲绳海槽沉积物中人工放射性137Cs的分布规律

过去几十年中,各国多偏重于海水中~(137)Cs的研究,而对沉积物中~(137)Cs的研究较少。1981年,我们乘“科学一号”船在冲绳海槽区取得了部分沉积物。本文试就~(137)Cs在沉积物中的分布及相关因素作简单探讨。     

Sources of land-derived runoff to a coral reef-fringed embayment identified using geochemical tracers in nearshore sediment traps

Geochemical tracers, including Ba, Co, Th, ⁷Be, ¹³⁷Cs and ²¹⁰Pb, and magnetic properties were used to characterize terrestrial runoff collected in nearshore time-series sediment traps in Hanalei Bay, Kauai, during flood and dry conditions in summer 2006, and to fingerprint possible runoff sources in the lower watershed. In combination, the tracers indicate that runoff during a flood in August could have come from cultivated taro fields bordering the lower reach of the river. Land-based runoff associated with summer floods may have a greater impact on coral reef communities in Hanalei Bay than in winter because sediment persists for several months. During dry periods, sediment carried by the Hanalei River appears to have been mobilized primarily by undercutting of low ⁷Be, low ¹³⁷Cs riverbanks composed of soil weathered from tholeiitic basalt with low Ba and Co concentrations. Following a moderate rainfall event in September, high ⁷Be sediment carried by the Hanalei River was probably mobilized by overland flow in the upper watershed. Ba-desorption in low-salinity coastal water limited its use to a qualitative runoff tracer in nearshore sediment. ²¹⁰Pb had limited usefulness as a terrestrial tracer in the nearshore due to a large dissolved oceanic source and scavenging onto resuspended bottom sediment. ²¹⁰Pb-scavenging does, however, illustrate the role resuspension could play in the accumulation of particle-reactive contaminants in nearshore sediment. Co and ¹³⁷Cs were not affected by desorption or geochemical scavenging and showed the greatest potential as quantitative sediment provenance indicators in material collected in nearshore sediment traps.     

Radiocaesium and 210Pb in Clyde sea loch sediments

Analysis of ²¹⁰Pb, ²²⁶Ra, ¹³⁷Cs and ¹³⁴Cs in short sediment cores provide first estimates of deposition rates in some Clyde sea lochs. The radio-caesium nuclides originate mainly in the liquid effluent released at distance from the Clyde by the Windscale nuclear fuel reprocessing plant and their concentrations in Clyde sediments provide information on (a) enrichment factors onto particulate matter, (b) surficial mixing coefficients and (c) sedimentation rates. A radiocaesium residence time in coastal waters of ca. 10³ years reflects the importance of scavenging by the high nearshore particulate flux. ²¹⁰Pb levels in sediments are controlled, in the unsupported fraction, by a major input sorbed on catchment particulates and, in the supported component, by ²²⁶Ra activities occasionally perturbed by unusually high surface values probably of planktonic origin. In one loch, detectable levels of ¹³⁴Cs and ⁶⁰Co are attributed to their discharge by nuclear submarines.     

Tracing the origin of Pb using stable Pb isotopes in surface sediments along the Korean Yellow Sea coast

To investigate the factors controlling lead (Pb) concentration and identify the sources of Pb in Yellow Sea sediments along the Korean coast, the concentration of Pb and Pb isotopes in 87 surface and 6 core sediment samples were analyzed. The 1 M HCl leached Pb concentrations had a similar geographic distribution to those of fine-grained sediments, while the distribution of residual Pb concentrations resembled that of coarse-grained sediments. Leached Pb was presumed to be associated with manganese (Mn) oxide and iron (Fe) oxy/hydroxide, while residual Pb was associated with potassium (K)-feldspar, based on good linear relationships between the leached Pb and the Fe/Mn concentrations, and the residual Pb and K concentrations. Based on a ratio–ratio plot with three isotopes (²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁶Pb and ²⁰⁸Pb/²⁰⁶Pb) and the geographic location of each sediment, sediments were categorized into two groups of samples as group1 and group2. Group 1 sediments, which were distributed in Gyeonggi Bay and offshore (north of 36.5°N), were determined to be a mixture of anthropogenic and natural Pb originating from the Han River, based on a ²⁰⁸Pb/²⁰⁶Pb against a Cs/Pb_leached mixing plot of core and surface sediments. Group 2 sediments, which were distributed in the south of 36.5°N, also showed a two endmembers mixing relationship between materials from the Geum River and offshore materials, which had very different Pb concentrations and isotope ratios. Based on the isotopes and their concentrations in core and surface sediments, this mixing relationship was interpreted as materials from two geographically different origins being mixed, rather than anthropogenic or natural mixing of materials with the same origin. Therefore, the relative percentage of materials supplied from the Geum River was calculated using a two endmembers mixing model and estimated to be as much as about 50% at 35°N. The spatial distribution of materials derived from the Geum River represented that of fine-grained sediments originating from the Geum River. It was concluded that Pb isotopes in sediments could be used as a tracer in studies of the origin of fine-grained sediments along the Korean Yellow Sea coast.