Measurements of /sup 234/U, /sup 238/U and /sup 230/Th in excreta of uranium-mill crushermen [electronic resource].

Published:: Richland, Wash. : Pacific Northwest Laboratory, 1982.
Oak Ridge, Tenn. : Distributed by the Office of Scientific and Technical Information, U.S. Dept. of Energy.
Additional Creators:: Pacific Northwest Laboratory and United States. Department of Energy. Office of Scientific and Technical Information

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Summary:

Uranium and thorium levels in excreta of uranium mill crushermen who are routinely exposed to airborne uranium ore dust were measured. The purpose was to determine whether /sup 230/Th was preferentially retained over either /sup 234/U or /sup 238/U in the body. Urine and fecal samples were obtained from fourteen active crushermen with long histories of exposure to uranium ore dust, plus four retired crushermen and three control individuals for comparison. Radiochemical procedures were used to separate out the uranium and thorium fractions, which were then electroplated on stainless steel discs and assayed by alpha spectrometry. Significantly greater activity levels of /sup 234/U and /sup 238/U were measured in both urine and fecal samples obtained from uranium mill crushermen, indicating that uranium in the inhaled ore dust was cleared from the body with a shorter biological half-time than the daughter product /sup 230/Th. The measurements also indicated that uranium and thorium separate in vivo and have distinctly different metabolic pathways and transfer rates in the body. The appropriateness of current ICRP retention and clearance parameters for /sup 230/Th in ore dust is questioned.

Report Numbers:

E 1.99:nureg/cr-2503
E 1.99: pnl-4027
pnl-4027
nureg/cr-2503

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Published through SciTech Connect.
07/01/1982.
"nureg/cr-2503"
" pnl-4027"
"DE82020635"
Fisher, D.R.; Jackson, P.O.; Scherpelz, R.I.; Brodacynski, G.G.

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