234Th238U radioactive disequilibrium in the surface layer of the ocean

²³⁴Th produced from ²³⁸U within sea water was found to be in radioactive disequilibrium with respect to its progenitor nuclide ²³⁸U in the surface layer of the ocean. The median value for ${}^{234}\text{Th}{}^{238}\text{U}$ activity ratio is 0.80 in the upper 200 m layer. A box-model calculation gives a removal residence time of thorium of about 0.38 yr. This suggests that ²³⁴Th is scavenged from the surface layer by the uptake of thorium by biota.