RT 5: Environmental Radiochemistry and Source Characterisation

Environmental Radiochemistry, or the Environmental Chemistry of Radionuclides, involves the study of the transport and fate of radioactive isotopes in the environment and supports decision makers with a scientific basis for environmental risk assessment and management. Applications include topics such as radon exposures to the public, nuclear decommissioning and waste disposal, nuclear preparedness, and nuclear security, and cover a multitude of potential sources, including nuclear power reactors, research reactors, medical and industrial sources, fuel cycle facilities, as well as nuclear weapon stockpiles. All these sources can be subject to nuclear accidents, nuclear terrorism and other nuclear security threats including the use of nuclear weapons against Norway or close to Norway.

Knowledge on the behaviour of radionuclides in the environment is fundamental to understanding the impacts on humans and the environment of any potential release. This requires information on source term (inventory as well as the amount, composition and speciation of the released radionuclides), as well as factors influencing transfer and exposure, all of which are linked to key research areas within environmental radiochemistry.

Figure 8: Modelling impacts of an accident onboard a floating nuclear reactor off the coast of Norway (Berge et al. 2020)

People involved

PhD students

Scope of RT5
The key research objectives in RT5 can be split into two main areas, namely questions about the potential source term (e.g., what might be released and how) and questions about the behaviour and impact of radionuclides following release. Both research areas are supported by state-of-the-art radioanalytical facilities, laboratory and field studies and a suite of transport, transfer and impact models.

RT5.1: Sources Security and Safety encompasses several scientific fields and a broad spectrum of destructive and non-destructive techniques to provide detailed information (elemental, isotopic, chemical and physical signatures) on the origins (source) and history (age, release scenario and environmental conditions) of radioactive materials present in environmental samples and nuclear forensic evidentiary specimens. To strengthen source term characterisation for emergency preparedness and risk assessments.

RT5.2: Environmental Transfer and Impact Assessment focuses on the transfer and impacts of radionuclides in the environment, including the way physical-chemical properties influence their behavior. While studies of the impacts of the Chernobyl and Fukushima accidents have provided valuable knowledge for nuclear preparedness, the majority of data is related to a few radionuclides and there is an urgent need to address other nuclear threats such as nuclear weapons, new generation reactors, materials out of regulatory control (MORC) and challenges associated with decommissioning of Norway’s research reactors.