ABSTRACT
After the Chernobyl accident, several radionuclides were deposited on the soil of the Piemonte Region in Italy. Contamination values were monitored and the initial vertical soil profiles of 134Cs and 106Ru were determined. For both radionuclides, more than 60% of the total activity remained in the upper 1-cm layer of soil during the first 7 mo after the accident. The time history of the soil profiles was studied over a period of 3 y in two Piedmontese localities. A compartmental model was also developed to describe downward migration of 134Cs and 106Ru. The results indicated a low mobility for both radionuclides. The change in their vertical profiles may be described using a box model with a transfer constant of 0.2 y-1 for 134Cs and 0.3 y-1 for 106Ru between 1-cm-thick layers. A strong association between the soil fine fraction and the mobility of both radionuclides was also found.
Subject(s)
Accidents , Cesium Radioisotopes/analysis , Nuclear Reactors , Ruthenium Radioisotopes/analysis , Soil Pollutants, Radioactive/analysis , Humans , Italy , UkraineABSTRACT
The exploitation of the optical tunnel effect allows the detection of very small spatial variations. The theory of optical tunneling is extended to an absorbing medium and an experimental apparatus capable of detecting displacements down to 0.19 nm, with fluctuations equivalent to 0.10 nm, is described. Some possible applications to the measurement of electrically induced volume changes of biological membranes are discussed.
