Effect of microbial biomass reduction by gamma-irradiation on the sorption of 137Cs, 85Sr, 139Ce, 57Co, 109Cd, 65Zn, 103Ru, 95mTc, I by soils.

Six soils, two Sphagnum peat samples and a clay mineral were irradiated with 40 and 80 kGy (4 and 8 Mrad) from a 60Co source. As a result the microbial biomass, determined separately for each sample, decreased considerably. Depending on the radionuclide, the sorption, as characterised by the distribution coefficient, decreased, increased or remained unchanged. The effect of the irradiation on the sorption of the radionuclides depended, in general, also on the type of the sample, especially whether well humified soils, (e.g. crop soils), poorly humified samples (Sphagnum peat, O-horizon from woodland), or a clay mineral was employed. The data reveal that irradiation produces, besides sterilization, also other effects in soils, which can change their sorption properties.