On the presence of enriched amounts of 235U in hot particles from the terrestrial area affected by the Palomares accident (Spain)

The characterisation by ICP-MS of an isolated Pu-U hot particle originating from the nuclear weapons accident in Palomares (Spain) shows, for the first time, that its uranium content is highly enriched in 235U. The enrichment has been confirmed by independent analyses of two surface soil samples col...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Environmental pollution (1987) 2007, Vol.145 (2), p.391-394
Main Authors: Jiménez-Ramos, M.C., Barros, H., García-Tenorio, R., García-León, M., Vioque, I., Manjón, G.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Enriched uranium
Environmental Monitoring - methods
explosives
Hot particle
Mass Spectrometry - methods
Palomares accident
particles
Plutonium
Plutonium - analysis
polluted soils
Radioactive Hazard Release
radionuclides
Soil Pollutants, Radioactive - analysis
soil pollution
Spain
uranium
Uranium - analysis
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:The characterisation by ICP-MS of an isolated Pu-U hot particle originating from the nuclear weapons accident in Palomares (Spain) shows, for the first time, that its uranium content is highly enriched in 235U. The enrichment has been confirmed by independent analyses of two surface soil samples collected in a heavily contaminated area close to the impact point of one of the bombs. This finding clarifies better the composition of the weapons involved in the accident and is of importance when the inventory of U and Pu in the contaminated area are to be calculated. The nuclear material released in the Palomares accident contains enriched amounts of 235U.
ISSN:0269-7491
1873-6424
DOI:10.1016/j.envpol.2006.08.002