Bundesamt für Seeschifffahrt und Hydrographie, 22589 Hamburg, Germany.
Environ Sci Technol. 2017 Nov 7;51(21):12146-12153. doi: 10.1021/acs.est.7b03168. Epub 2017 Oct 19.
In this study we present new seawater data of U and U sampled in the North Sea in 2010. The North Sea has been and is still receiving a considerable input of anthropogenic radionuclides from nuclear reprocessing facilities located in La Hague (France) and Sellafield (Great Britain). It therefore represents an important source region for oceanographic tracer studies using the transient signal of anthropogenic U. A proper knowledge of the sources of U is an essential prerequisite for such tracer studies. The U data set presented in this study covers the transition regions of the North Sea to the Atlantic Ocean, to the Baltic Sea, and upstream the Elbe River. It is discussed in the context of available U data from the literature. Our results show that both U concentrations and U/U ratios in surface waters of the North Sea can be explained by simple binary mixing models implying that U behaves conservatively in seawater. We further show that the input of U by the Elbe River is negligible, while there might be a maximum input of 12 g/yr via the Baltic Sea. The results of the mixing models suggest that this still unidentified U contamination could be supplied by fresh water input.
在这项研究中，我们展示了 2010 年在北海采集的 U 和 U 的新海水数据。北海曾经并且仍然从位于拉阿格（法国）和塞拉菲尔德（英国）的核后处理设施接收大量人为放射性核素。因此，它是使用人为 U 的瞬态信号进行海洋学示踪剂研究的重要源区。对 U 的来源有正确的了解是进行此类示踪剂研究的必要前提。本研究中提出的 U 数据集涵盖了北海向大西洋、波罗的海以及易北河上游的过渡区。根据文献中提供的可用 U 数据对其进行了讨论。我们的结果表明，北海表层水中的 U 浓度和 U/U 比值都可以用简单的二元混合模型来解释，这表明 U 在海水中的行为是保守的。我们还表明，易北河输入的 U 可以忽略不计，而通过波罗的海可能有 12 克/年的最大输入。混合模型的结果表明，这种仍未确定的 U 污染可能是由淡水输入供应的。
