14C IN TREE RINGS IN THE VICINITY OF THE RBMK REACTOR NUCLEAR POWER PLANT

• Published in: Radiocarbon 2023-12, Vol.65 (6), p.1343-1350
• Main Authors: Nazarov, Evgeniy I, Kruzhalov, Alexander V, Vasyanovich, Maxim E, Ekidin, Alexey A, Pyshkina, Maria D, Kukarskikh, Vladimir V, Parkhomchuk, Ekaterina V
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Carbon dioxide; Catalytic oxidation; Cellulose; Food; Graphite; Mathematical analysis; Meteorological data; Nuclear fuels; Nuclear physics; Nuclear power plants; Nuclear reactors; RBMK; Tree rings
• ISSN: 0033-8222; 1945-5755
• DOI: 10.1017/RDC.2023.125

The paper presents the results of radiocarbon (14C) concentration measurements in tree rings in the vicinity of Kursk NPP (Russia) with four operating RBMK reactors. The sampling was carried out from the site with the highest expected accumulation of radiocarbon in vegetation. The site was determined with long-term meteorological data. The measurements of 14C concentration carried out with accelerator-mass spectrometer in Budker Institute of Nuclear Physics, Novosibirsk, Russia. The obtained results demonstrated the influence of exploitation of Kursk NPP to the concentration of 14C in tree rings. Based on the equilibrium between the 14C ratio in the tree rings and the surrounding air, retrospective estimates of the radiocarbon discharge and effective doses were made. Effective doses were calculated with two approaches: IAEA methodology and less conservative approach, considering the real food consumption in the Kursk region. The values of calculated doses by the second method (0.08–2.58 μSv) are more than 2 times less than IAEA approach (0.17–5.30 μSv). The highest difference between measured and background 14C in tree ring is 41.7 ± 5.8 pMC in 2014 during the restoration of graphite stack. The main contribution to 14С exposure in the considering period is caused by background – from 70 to 99%.