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14C studies in the vicinity of the Czech NPPs

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Abstract

The Czech Republic has two nuclear power plants (NPPs) equipped with light water pressurized reactors (LWPR). Annual sampling of biota for 14C activity monitoring by Nuclear Physics Institute in cooperation with the National Institute of Radiation Protection started in 2002. We present the results of biota monitoring covering two sampling periods 2002–2005 and 2007–2008. The considerable problem in the case of biota sampling for monitoring purpose is given by a relatively short period of biota accumulation for prevailing types of biota samples (leaves of deciduous trees or agricultural plants), which usually lasts from several weeks to 2 months. The short period of sample accumulation can also be partly overlapped by a service period of reactor outage in a given NPP. On the base of our several years’ experiences we have changed a type of the sampled material to reduce variations of observed activities and to precise reference levels in the exposed and reference sites.

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Notes

  1. Compared with LWPR releases from BWR contain considerably greater percentage of 14CO2, above 90% [6, 8]. This chemical form of released 14C can be assimilated by plant photosynthesis and hence greater 14C activity excess can be observed in the surrounding biota of NPPs with BWR [43, 44].

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Acknowledgments

This work was funded by internal grant of the Nuclear Physics Institute AS CR (No. AV0Z 10480505) and by National Radiation Protection Institute (grants No. JC 03/2006 and JC 05/2008). The authors acknowledge for the 13C determinations of nettle samples performed by Dr. István Futó from the Institute of Nuclear Research HAS (ATOMKI) in Debrecen, Hungary.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. DRD, Nuclear Physics Institute AS CR, Na Truhlarce 39/64, 180 86, Prague, Czech Republic

    I. Svetlik, K. Turek & L. Tomaskova

  2. National Radiation Protection Institute, Bartoskova 1450/28, 140 00, Prague, Czech Republic

    I. Svetlik, M. Fejgl & V. Michalek

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  1. I. Svetlik
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  2. M. Fejgl
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Correspondence to I. Svetlik.

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Svetlik, I., Fejgl, M., Turek, K. et al. 14C studies in the vicinity of the Czech NPPs. J Radioanal Nucl Chem 292, 689–695 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-011-1495-y

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