Uptake of 137Cs and 90Sr in rice plants

Abstract

In order to study the transfer of water-borne 137Cs and 90Sr into rice plants, pot experiments were done by growing rice plants on soils taken from rice beds near two nuclear power plants: Qinshan Nuclear Power Plant and Daya Bay Nuclear Power Plant in China. The vertical migration of 137Cs and 90Sr in the soil samples was studied, and results show that almost all the contaminants were retained in the top 1 cm of soil with at most a few percent down to 3 cm of soil. The areal transfer factors of 137Cs and 90Sr were studied by adding various activity concentrations of the two radionuclides to the irrigation water and then measuring the activity concentration in the various rice tissues. The areal transfer factors were also analyzed for their dependence on soil characteristics, time and duration of the contamination. The areal transfer factors obtained in this study refer to the absorption of the fallout nuclides deposited in the irrigation water in a rice field as opposed to other studies that deal with uniform activity concentration in the soils.