• Characteristics of Groundwater Environment in Highly Enriched Areas of Natural Radionuclides
  • Jeong, Do-Hwan;Eom, Ig-Chun;Yoon, Jeong-Ki;Kim, Moon-Su;Kim, Yeong-Kyoo;Kim, Tae-Seung;
  • National Institute of Environmental Research;National Institute of Environmental Research;National Institute of Environmental Research;National Institute of Environmental Research;Department of Geology, Kyungpook National University;National Institute of Environmental Research;
  • 고함량 자연방사성물질 우려지역에 대한 지하수 환경 특성 연구
  • 정도환;엄익춘;윤정기;김문수;김영규;김태승;
  • 국립환경과학원;국립환경과학원;국립환경과학원;국립환경과학원;경북대학교;국립환경과학원;
Abstract
Groundwater sampling was performed at 38 wells where they are located in the areas with high uranium and radon (marked as A and B, respectively) concentrations, which were based on the previous research results. In-situ parameters (temperature, pH, EC, Eh, DO) and natural radionuclides (uranium and radon) were analyzed to figure out the characteristics of groundwater environments. In-situ data did not show any relations to natural radionuclide data, which could be caused by groundwater mixing, depths of wells, and geological settings, etc. But the highest radon well presented relatively low temperature value and the highest uranium well presented relatively low pH values The highest uranium concentration ranging $1.14{\sim}188.19{\mu}g/L$ showed in the area of A region consisted of Jurassic two-mica granite. The areas of Jurassic biotite granite and Cretaceous granite in the A region have the uranium concentrations ranging $0.10{\sim}49.78{\mu}g/L$ and $0.36{\sim}3.01{\mu}g/L$, respectively. The uranium values from between wells of community water systems (CWSs) penetrating fractured bed-rock aquifers and personal boreholes settled in shallow aquifers near the wells of CWSs show big differences. It implies that the groundwaters of the two areas have evolved from different water-rock interaction paths that may caused by various types of wells having different aquifers. High radon activities in the area of B region composed of Precambrian gneiss showed ranging from 6,770 to 64,688 pCi/L. Even though the wells are located in the same geological settings, their rodon concentration presented different according to depth and distance.

Keywords: Groundwater;Uranium;Radon;Geological setting;Depth;

This Article

  • 2010; 15(6): 9-16

    Published on Dec 31, 2010

  • Received on Feb 10, 2010
  • Accepted on Nov 2, 2010

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