Ketterer
Szechenyi Piketon NAU
April 27, 2019
TO: Elizabeth D. Lamerson and citizens of Pike County, Ohio
FROM: Michael E. Ketterer, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus, Chemistry and Biochemistrya
IN COLLABORATION WITH: Scott C. Szechenyi, M.S., Independent Consultantb, BS ‘97, MS
‘01, Northern Arizona University
SUBJECT: Investigation of anthropogenic uranium, neptunium, and plutonium in
environmental samples near Piketon, Ohio
[email protected] [email protected] SUBMITTED BY:
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Ketterer Szechenyi Piketon NAU
Summary. A pro bono, public interest study has been completed to investigate potential
sources of uranium (U), neptunium (Np) and plutonium (Pu) in environmental samples
from the vicinity of Piketon, OH. The authors collaborated with a local community member,
and analyzed the samples at Northern Arizona University, using modern nuclear forensics
approaches.
The principal questions to be addressed were: a) can non-natural uranium be found in the
local environment, and b) can non-weapons-testing fallout neptunium and plutonium be
similarly found? We assumed the null hypotheses that all environmental U is naturally
occurring, and that all Np-Pu stems from Cold War-era nuclear weapons testing fallout.
The data showed that non-natural U, and non-fallout Np and Pu are systematically present
in many locations; accordingly, we tested the alternative hypotheses that, the Portsmouth
Gaseous Diffusion Facility (PORTS) are the explanatory sources therein. We observed,
using isotope mixing plots, that the U, Np, and Pu are reasonably explained using fallout
and PORTS/Paducah end-members described in two DOE-funded studies (Moody, 1995;
Kelley et al., 1999).
Several specific findings are as follows:
1) Enriched U is found in surface waters, sediments, and interior dusts. This enriched U
also contains 236U, a known component of “recycled U” that was processed at PORTS. The
environmental samples exhibiting enriched U have compositions consistent with mixing
between natural U and PORTS U (Moody, 1995).
2) Non-fallout 237Np and Pu isotopes are also found in bed sediments, suspended
sediments, and interior dusts. These transuranic elements are known contaminants in feed
material used at PORTS and the Paducah facilities. The environmental samples exhibiting
non-fallout Np and Pu are consistent with mixing between global “stratospheric fallout”
Np-Pu (Kelley et al., 1999), and material sampled from the Paducah and Portsmouth
Gaseous Diffusion Plants (Moody, 1995).
3) The study consistently found non-fallout 237Np in suspended sediments of an unnamed
creek that is draining a landfill construction area that is currently being worked. These
results indicate a probable source of 237Np in surface materials within the creek’s drainage
basin.
4) We have also encountered enriched uranium in interior spaces at a local school, and in
the attic dust sampled from various residents, including a residence that was constructed
in 2007. These findings point to recent/ongoing airborne releases, as opposed to legacy
contamination dating to the 20th century.
5) The assembled evidence indicates, with a reasonable degree of scientific certainty, that
emissions from the PORTS facility account for the anthropogenic contents of U, Np, and Pu
encountered in environmental samples from the Piketon vicinity.
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Ketterer Szechenyi Piketon NAU
Introduction. The purpose of this project was to investigate environmental samples
supplied to the authors by Elizabeth D. Lamerson, as part of a study of the possible
presence of anthropogenic U (uranium), neptunium (Np) and plutonium (Pu) in the
environment. The study focused on environmental samples Ms. Lamerson gathered from
the proximity of Piketon, Ohio. The principal questions addressed were: A) can non-
naturally occurring U be identified in the local environment? and B) can Np and Pu be
identified in the local environment that originate from source(s) other than nuclear
weapons testing fallout? Our study used scientifically sound, legally defensible methods
that are well known and accepted in the field of nuclear forensics, which mirror the
approaches used by qualified laboratories/scientists throughout the world.
Methods. Media sampled/analyzed include: i) surface soils; ii) aquatic sediments and
surface water samples from local creeks and the Scioto River; iii) “swipe” samples collected
from un-inhabited interior spaces; and iv) bulk dust samples vacuumed or hand-gathered
from un-inhabited interior spaces. Ms. Lamerson and other community members collected
samples from public areas; additional samples were collected with appropriate access and
permissions from private property. No samples were acquired from US Government
property. All samples from private/residential property are de-identified as to ownership
and geography, to respect the absolute confidentiality and privacy of the cooperating
citizens. The authors will not reveal this location/identity information.
No attempt has been made to measure U concentrations, and accordingly, no inferences are
made nor implied regarding this element’s concentrations in comparison to established
maximum contaminant levels (MCL’s). While this has not been pursued herein, the authors
acknowledge the importance of this undertaking in future studies.
The present focus on isotope (atom) ratios enables a sensitive and robust comparison
between natural vs. anthropogenic (e.g., isotopically enriched or depleted) sources of
uranium in many types of environmental or biological samples. All results were measured
by quadrupole inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (Q-ICPMS), following
established, well-known chemical preparation and instrumental measurement strategies
(e.g., Ketterer et al., 2000a, 2000b, 2003). For the element uranium, the ratios measured
include: 234U/238U, 235U/238U, and 236U/238U. These dimensionless values represent the
actual ratios of the number of atoms of the specified masses, present in the sample under
investigation. The measurement of these three U isotope ratios permits the detection of
relatively small deviations from natural U found in the Earth’s crust (via deviations in
235U/238U and 234U/238U), as well as the detection of small inputs of “recycled uranium”.
Using 236U/238U ratios, one can detect the presence of small additions of U recovered from
Pu production reactors, as 236U is synthesized by neutron capture processes therein. In
situations where enriched or depleted U contains a “recycled uranium” component, the
detection of 236U is itself a potentially sensitive measure of such anthropogenic inputs, as
236U is virtually absent in Nature, and only small amounts can be accounted for by nuclear
weapons testing fallout (Ketterer et al., 2013). Depleted uranium used in military
applications commonly contains 236U (Lloyd et al., 2009; Bu et al., 2017) and it follows that
the associated enriched U produced in the same isotope separation processes, will also
contain significant levels of 236U.
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For Np and Pu, the actual atom concentrations of 237Np, and the activities of 239+240Pu were
measured, along with the atom ratios 237Np/239Pu and 240Pu/239Pu. As is the case with the
U results, the Np-Pu isotope ratios permit analogous, robust comparisons between baseline
“stratospheric fallout” vs. non-fallout sources (e.g., the contaminants present in recycled U).
The basis for our data interpretations of the Np-Pu results is as described by Kelley et al.
(1999), a DOE-funded study that was conducted at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.
Our laboratory methodologies for Np and Pu measurements followed sample preparation
and Q-ICPMS-based procedures discussed elsewhere (Ketterer et al., 2004, Ketterer and
Szechenyi, 2008). The Np-Pu results for selected samples were confirmed by Q-ICPMS at
an external laboratory (Prof. José Luis Más, CITIUS, Universidad de Sevilla), in order to
affirm the major inferences from our own lab work.
Results. The analytical results obtained in this study are presented in Table 1 (U) and
Table 2 (Np-Pu). These tables display the above-mentioned ratios for the elements U, Np,
and Pu.
For purposes of inferring the presence of anthropogenic U and/or non-weapons test fallout
Np-Pu, the measured ratios should be compared to the following benchmarks:
Ratio Expected in Nature and/or contemporary baseline
234U/238U 0.000055 (affected by 234U-238U disequilibria)
235U/238U 0.0072527 (varies within a ~ 0.2% relative range via natural
fractionation processes)
236U/238U ~ 10-10 in Nature; influenced by fallout (Ketterer et al., 2013)
237Np/239Pu 0.48 ± 0.07 (Kelley et al., 1999)
240Pu/239Pu 0.180 ± 0.014 (Kelley et al., 1999)
It is obvious, from a cursory examination of Tables 1 and 2, that “anthropogenic U” and
“non-fallout Np-Pu” are pervasive in the environment surrounding Piketon. This
generates the obvious hypothesis, namely, that the local Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion
Facility (PORTS) facility is the explanatory source of the U-Np-Pu contamination. In order
to test this hypothesis, the interpretations of these results, and inferences provided, will
follow in the next sections of the report.
End Members. A previous study of PORTS samples was conducted as part of a larger
counter-forensics program (PUBLIC); an unlimited distribution report was published by
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (Moody, 1995). The major findings of the Moody
report are discussed herein to add context and to aid interpretation of the present Piketon
datasets. The Moody (1995) study conducted an interrogation of the U-Np-Pu signatures
present during the ~ 1994 sampling from within process areas at the PORTS site. The
Moody (1995) U-Np-Pu signatures can serve as a reasonable “end-member”, representing
a snapshot of the potential PORTS releases in the environment; the other end members
would consist of natural U, and the weapons-testing fallout Np-Pu signature. One must
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bear in mind that the Moody samples are only a single sampling event, at one point in time
and limited in scope/space, over a decades-long history of a large-scale facility.
It is common practice in the isotope geosciences to interpret mixing processes using
“mixing plots”, typically consisting of two ratios bearing a common denominator. Herein,
we make use of mixing plots of 234U/238U vs. 235U/238U, and 237Np/239Pu vs. 240Pu/239Pu.
The null hypothesis (Ho) for uranium in an unknown environmental sample is that the
234U/238U and 235U/238U are congruent with naturally occurring uranium; in other words,
no other end member need be invoked to explain the observed isotope composition. On a
mixing line, samples that support Ho will cluster, within measurement uncertainty, of
naturally occurring U ratios; samples that are statistically distinguishable on the plot from
the Ho cluster will be immediately apparent, and thus, one rejects Ho. The alternate
hypothesis, H1, is that the sample contains an anthropogenic component of enriched or
depleted U, from an external source that requires a plausible explanation.
In a similar manner, Ho for Np-Pu is that the source of these elements, if even detectable, is
from nuclear weapons testing fallout, deposited globally, mainly during the 1950’s and
1960’s. The Kelley et al. (1999) study is the authoritative paper on the Np-Pu
characteristics of global fallout. The Kelley study also discusses the uses of 237Np-239Pu-
240Pu mixing diagrams in the detection of other Np-Pu sources. The H herein is that a non-
1
fallout Np-Pu source is present, analogous to above discussion regarding the U hypotheses.
In any two-ratio, common-denominator mixing diagram, simple binary mixtures of two
components plot along a straight line segment, spanning the end members, as was
observed for global fallout mixed with Chernobyl debris (e.g., as discussed in Ketterer and
Szechenyi, 2008). Additional components may, coincidentally, fall along the mixing line,
although more commonly, fall well away from the line. Lastly, it is important to keep in
mind that correlation does not prove causation when interpreting mixing plots, although
often, there is only one realistic explanation for two-component mixing behavior.
The 1995 Moody study is important, because it defines the composition of PORTS, an
important local source of environmental actinides acknowledged by the US Government
(e.g., DOE, 2019). Legacy and/or contemporary/ongoing emissions from PORTS would
alter the Ho U-Np-Pu environment signatures, leading to rejection of either/both the U or
Np-Pu null hypotheses for individual offsite samples. If H1 is accepted, the Moody
signatures allow one to ascertain whether PORTS is the explanatory source.
Moody’s Project PUBLIC (Portsmouth/Paducah Uranium Barrier: Livermore Investigative
Campaign) analyzed three samples obtained from inside the PORTS facility; the U-Np-Pu
compositions of these were determined through rigorous analytical work at a DOE-funded
lab (Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory), and therefore, there is no ambiguity
regarding the PORTS samples’ authenticity. Moody (1995) also characterized two samples
from the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Facility, a site which delivered pre-enriched feed
material for further enrichment at PORTS. The Moody samples also varied in U isotope
composition, and generate a mixing plot, shown in Figure 1.
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Figure 1. 234U-235U-238U mixing diagram of PORTS samples mixed with natural composition uranium, from
data reported by Moody, 1995, UCRL-ID-119658. The trendline has been defined for natural and PORTS
samples. Paducah plant samples are plotted (but not included in trendline regression), as the Paducah
cascade is considered to be one of the PORTS feedstock sources. An interesting observation by Moody
indicates a slightly depleted uranium signature in samples analyzed from the Paducah plant. Natural
uranium is used as the left-hand end member.
Uranium sources. Using naturally occurring U, global fallout Np-Pu, and the Moody U-Np-
Pu signatures as potential end-members, we turn to examining whether the Piketon-
vicinity environmental samples exhibit: A) rejection of either Ho; and B) mixing patterns
that point to the Moody PORTS U-Np-Pu signatures as an explanatory source. A series of
Figures (2 through 5) compare the observed isotope compositions vs. U end-members and
the Moody mixing line.
Figure 2 illustrates the U isotope compositions of dust samples collected from the interior
of a local Piketon-vicinity school. The dust samples, collected as “swipes”, using absorbent
cloths resembling “baby wipes” exhibit the following: A) the Ho is rejected for at least four
of the samples (red triangles) and therefore, these dust samples from the school must
contain at least some added enriched U component; and B) there exists a fairly
consistent two-component mixing relationship. The Moody 1995 trendline is overlain for
comparison.
Analogous comparisons for uranium isotope compositions are provided, using the data of
Table 1, for samples from the Scioto River (Figure 3), Piketon-vicinity creeks and drainages
(Figure 4), and for dusts and soils collected from Piketon-vicinity residences (Figure 5). In
all cases, similar findings are evident: Ho is repeatedly rejected, for many data points, and
the observed patterns closely follow two-component mixing lines. Each comparison leads
to the immediate conclusion, that many of the environmental samples contain at least
some added enriched U component.
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In reference to uranium isotope compositions, some important findings can be garnered
from the U isotope compositions of specific samples reported in Table 1. Samples 55 and
77 represent attic dust “swipes” collected in two independent sampling events from one
local residence; according to the owners, the residence was constructed in 2007. Samples
55 and 77 exhibit 235U/238U of 0.00799 and 0.00896, respectively. These results point to
the existence of recent, or contemporary/ongoing transport processes that have
resulted in deposition of enriched U at this residence. Accordingly, the contamination
cannot be accounted for by legacy emissions that occurred prior to 2001, when routine
enrichment operations terminated at PORTS.
Selected samples demonstrate that the enriched U also contains 236U. The long-lived 236U
isotope is found at extremely low abundances in Nature; background, pre-nuclear era
236U/238U are ~ 10-10 or lower. Small amounts of 236U are also associated with nuclear
weapons testing fallout, and stratospheric fallout is characterized by a 236U/239Pu atom
ratio of ~ 0.2 (Ketterer et al., 2013). Fallout-derived 236U/238U are commonly ~ 10-7 or less,
and are controlled by i) fallout inventory and ii) crustal 238U concentrations. In contrast,
the overarching pattern of the Piketon-vicinity environmental samples is that they exhibit
detectable 236U, wherever sufficiently elevated 235U/238U ratios are present, provided that U
signal levels in the mass spectrometer allow reliable measurement of 236U/238U.
Figure 2. 234U-235U-238U mixing diagram mixing diagram of samples collected at a Piketon-vicinity school in
Fall/Winter 2018-2019. The mixing line of PORTS sample data from Moody (1995) is included for
comparison.
The presence of 236U can be most reliably detected when 235U/238U is grossly elevated; a
case in point can be seen in dissolved U in Little Beaver Creek, Big Beaver Creek, and in the
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Scioto River. Referring to Table 1, Sample 45 (Little Beaver Creek, downstream) exhibited
235U/238U = 0.0224 and 236U/238U = 0.000075; Sample 47 (Big Beaver Creek, downstream)
had 235U/238U = 0.0218 and 236U/238U = 0.000065. The 236U-bearing enriched U is also
found downstream in the Scioto River (235U/238U = 0.0199 and 236U/238U = 0.000065). We
note that these specific samples plot close to the Moody mixing lines (Figures 3 and 4). The
implied source of this 236U and elevated 235U/238U in surface waters is the permitted
outfalls and/or non-point discharges from the PORTS facility. Our findings confirm the
US DOE’s previous findings of dissolved enriched uranium in these same locations (DOE,
2014). The latter study estimated the total 2014 outfall discharges from PORTS to be ~ 14
kilograms, which further supports our findings in these surface waterways.
Other mass spectrometric techniques, such as triple quadrupole ICPMS, or acellerator mass
spectrometry (AMS) are better suited than Q-ICPMS for measuring low-abundance 236U
(e.g., Bu et al., 2017). It is, therefore, technically feasible to trace the transport of this
PORTS-derived dissolved U contamination, even after large dilution, downstream into the
Ohio River watershed.
Figure 3. 234U-235U-238U mixing diagram mixing diagram of water and sediment samples collected from the
Scioto River in Fall/Winter 2018-2019. The mixing line of PORTS sample data from Moody (1995) is included
for comparison.
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Figure 4. 234U-235U-238U mixing diagram of water and samples collected from Piketon-vicinity drainages in
Fall/Winter 2018-2019. The mixing line of PORTS sample data from Moody (1995) is included for
comparison.
Figure 5. 234U-235U-238U mixing diagram of soil and dust samples collected Piketon-vicinity residences in
Fall/Winter 2018-2019. The mixing line of PORTS sample data from Moody (1995) is included for
comparison.
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Though not presented in this report, our examination of the U isotope results shows that
236U/238U vs. 235U/238U two-component mixing behavior is present. This implicit 236U/238U -
235U/238U mixing pattern cannot be explained by mixing between crustal (natural) U and
weapons-test fallout; instead, the source of the 236U is “recycled U”.
During the Cold War era, the US Government was concerned with an impending shortage of
U metal, and “recycled” U was recovered from Pu production reactors, and the recovered U
was blended with primary ore-extracted U feed. Accordingly, most feed to the US’s gaseous
diffusion plants contained 236U, a practice that commenced in the 1950’s. The “recycled U”
also brings along other concomitants (99Tc, 237Np, and Pu isotopes) that entered the
gaseous diffusion process plants. The 99Tc and “transuranics” represent unintended
contaminants in the gaseous diffusion process, and their chemical behaviours are
significantly different from U in the gaseous diffusion separation chemistry of UF6 (g). The
Moody (1995) study revealed the presence of 236U (as well as 237Np and Pu isotopes) in
DOE-authenticated PORTS samples; therefore, it is beyond question that 236U, 237Np,
239Pu, and 240Pu are specifically associated with PORTS facility processes.
Neptunium and plutonium sources. As previously stated, the Kelley et al. (1999) DOE
study is the authoritative source describing the expected Np-Pu isotope compositions of
weapons-testing “stratospheric” fallout found globally. Kelley et al. (1999) used plots of
237Np/239Pu vs. 240Pu/239Pu to examine mixing of the two dominant North American
sources of fallout, namely, “stratospheric” and Nevada Test Site fallout. The Kelley paper
also states that non-fallout sources are immediately apparent on these three-isotope
mixing diagrams.
The results for the determination of 237Np mass concentrations, 239+240Pu activities, and the
atom ratios 237Np/239Pu and 240Pu/239Pu are presented in Table 2. What is immediately
apparent is that many of the 237Np/239Pu ratios grossly exceed the expectations for
global (stratospheric) fallout as reported by Kelley et al. (1999). It is also quite evident
that sediments obtained from Little Beaver Creek, Big Beaver Creek, and the Scioto River,
all exhibit elevated 237Np mass concentrations, that are unrealistic for stratospheric
fallout (e.g., refer to atom concentrations given in Kelley et al.). These three specific 237Np-
affected locations are all downstream of PORTS. The DOE (2014) AESR report also reports
237Np activities in sediments of Big Beaver and Big Run Creeks; these activities (in pCi/g)
are similar to the atom concentrations (in pg/g) reported herein. It follows that the
PORTS facility is the explanatory source of the elevated 237Np concentrations in
sediments downstream of the plant.
Table 2 also reveals the existence of airborne pathways for release of non-fallout 237Np,
as elevated 237Np/239Pu ratios were also detected in attic dusts in at least one residence
(Sample 40), and possibly, a second residence (Sample 34). The consistently low 239+240Pu
activities render it difficult, in some cases, to perform more precise 240Pu/239Pu
measurements for further signature clarification.
It is also apparent that some of the soil samples (e.g., Sample 59) appear to resemble the
240Pu/239Pu expected fallout Np-Pu that is congruent with the Kelley et al. (1999)
signatures; these soils lack any 237Np elevation.
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Table 2 also presents results for suspended sediments collected from an unnamed creek
draining the “landfill construction area”. These samples exhibit very low 239+240Pu
activities, and also contain U that is indistinguishable from naturally occurring sources;
nevertheless, it is evident (e.g., Samples 36, 38, 44, and 58) that these suspended samples
consistently exhibit elevated 237Np/239Pu ratios that are not explainable via global
(stratospheric) fallout. The series of four sediment samples from the landfill drainage area
were collected at different dates and under different flow/rain event conditions. These
results point to a possible source of 237Np in the landfill construction area.
The above-mentioned 237Np and 237Np/239Pu results can be viewed in the context of the
Kelley et al. (1999) “null hypothesis” signature. It is evident that Ho must be rejected for
some of the samples presented in Table 2. Additional insight into the second source term is
also obtained from Moody (1995). In Moody’s Table 5, absolute numbers of atoms per
sample are reported for three samples from PORTS, and two samples from the Paducah
Gaseous Diffusion Facility. The PORTS samples have only approximate 239Pu and 240Pu
atom amounts reported; hence it is difficult to affix 237Np/239Pu and 240Pu/239Pu signatures.
Nevertheless, the three PORTS samples all point to a 237Np/239Pu atom ratio of ~ 300-400,
while the better-defined Paducah samples exhibit ratios of ~ 900-1000. It is also evident
that the two Paducah samples, 94-7-38 and 94-7-45, both exhibit non-fallout 240Pu/239Pu of
0.065-0.070. These Paducah 240Pu/239Pu ratios are also very similar to the non-fallout
240Pu/239Pu we have measured in Little Beaver Creek sediments (Sample 46), along with a
large elevation in 237Np/239Pu.
The 237Np/239Pu and 240Pu/239Pu results were used to construct a mixing diagram (Figure
6). Note that, because of the extreme variance in 237Np/239Pu, the vertical axis has been
plotted with a logarithmic scale; the Kelley NTS-stratospheric fallout mixing line therefore
appears as a curved line at the bottom of the plot. Figure 6 illustrates that many of the
samples shown in Table 2 are incongruent with the Kelley mixing line, even when precise
240Pu/239Pu ratios were not feasible (refer to the reported standard deviations in Table 2).
It is obvious that a different component must be present. Given the Moody (1995) results,
and the physical proximity of the samples to the PORTS facility, the results of Figure 6
indicate that the non-fallout 237Np originates from PORTS. Our 237Np results are consistent
with statements made in DOE’s 2017 Monitoring Report (DOE, 2019).
Conclusions. To a reasonable degree of scientific certainty, the authors opine
that the PORTS facility is the source of the anthropogenic (enriched) uranium found in
the offsite environment. The PORTS facility, to a similar degree of reasonable scientific
certainty, is also the source of the non-fallout 237Np and Pu, as well as the elevated Np
atom concentrations encountered in the offsite environment. These statements are
based upon: i) the obvious deviations of the signatures from natural U and/or global
fallout; ii) the explanation provided by the Moody signatures; iii) the presence of non-
fallout 236U as an indicator of “recycled U”, and iv) the absence of any other plausible local
source that explains our observed results.
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Figure 4. 237Np-239Pu-240Pu mixing diagram, comparing the composition of North American nuclear weapons
testing fallout (Kelley et al., 1999; blue points), the samples Moody (1995; yellow points), and some of our
Piketon-vicinity samples (red points). Note that the vertical scale is logarithmic; hence mixing lines appear as
curved segments. On account of the low 240Pu signals measured for many of our samples, the precision of
many of the 240Pu/239Pu measurements is less than optimal (refer to Table 2); nevertheless, the Piketon-
vicinity samples appear to plot along a hypothetical mixing curve with stratospheric fallout and Paducah end-
members. Note that in the Kelley mixing curve, “stratospheric fallout” is at the upper right of the ellipse, and
Nevada Test Site fallout appears at the lower left.
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Table 1.
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Table 1. (continued)
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Table 1. (continued)
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Table 2. Results for 237Np atom concentrations (picograms per gram), 239+240Pu activities
(Bq/kg), and the atom ratios 237Np/239Pu and 240Pu/239Pu; selected Piketon-vicinity
samples were analyzed. The standard deviations (random error only) of each block of 3 to
5 sequential mass spectrometric measurements are shown. Note that large standard
deviations are encountered for numerous 240Pu/239Pu results, on account of the relatively
low activities and hence, low signal levels at 240Pu. Further discussion of these results is
beyond the scope/purpose of the present report.
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Acknowledgments
This project has been prepared as a pro bono, independent, scholarly work of the authors. Although the
analytical work has been conducted at the laboratories of Northern Arizona University’s Department of
Chemistry and Biochemistry, this work is the initiative and product of the authors alone; any results/opinions
expressed represent those of the authors, and do not reflect opinions of the University, the Arizona Board of
Regents, or the State of Arizona. This work has been conducted by the authors for the benefit of the public
and citizens of Pike County, and is intended for public dissemination. The authors are grateful to the
Chemistry and Biochemistry Department for laboratory access, stimulating discussions, and hosting our visits
in recent months. We particularly wish to express appreciation to Prof. Jani C. Ingram, and her research
group, for their generosity in sharing their laboratory space and instrumentation with us for several weeks
while the work was conducted. We also thank James Biddle, Radiation Safety Officer, for making our work
possible under the authority of the University’s Radioactive Materials License, issued by the State of Arizona,
in order to perform measurements of neptunium and plutonium isotopes. We owe muchísimas gracias to
Prof. José Luis Mas Balbuena (Universidad de Sevilla) for providing confirmations of selected neptunium and
plutonium results in the Sevilla CITIUS lab, for invigorating discussions during his visit to NAU in February
2019, and for joining us in enjoying the abundant snowfall that occurred in Flagstaff during our February
estancia.
Finally, we owe utmost thanks and respect to Elizabeth Lamerson and her fellow citizens of Piketon for
access, discussions, and cooperation!
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