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Vegetation composition and ²²⁶Ra uptake by native plant species at a uranium mill tailings impoundment in South China
Identifier
018260
Type of Spiritual Experience
Background
All brackens and ferns
A description of the experience
J Environ Radioact. 2014 Mar;129:100-6. doi: 10.1016/j.jenvrad.2013.12.012. Epub 2014 Jan 9.
Vegetation composition and ²²⁶Ra uptake by native plant species at a uranium mill tailings impoundment in South China.
Hu N1, Ding D2, Li G1, Zheng J1, Li L1, Zhao W1, Wang Y1.
- 1Key Discipline Laboratory for National Defense for Biotechnology in Uranium Mining and Hydrometallurgy, University of South China, Hengyang, Hunan 421001, PR China.
- 2Key Discipline Laboratory for National Defense for Biotechnology in Uranium Mining and Hydrometallurgy, University of South China, Hengyang, Hunan 421001, PR China. Electronic address: dingdxzzz@163.com.
Abstract
A field investigation was conducted for the vegetation composition and (226)Ra uptake by native plant species at a uranium mill tailings impoundment in South China. 80 species belonging to 67 genera in 32 families were recorded in the sampling sites.
The Poaceae and Asteraceae were the dominant families colonizing the impoundment. The number of the plant species and vegetation community composition in the sampling sites seemed most closely related to the activities of (226)Ra and the pH value of the uranium tailings.
The plant species in the sampling sites with relatively low activities of (226)Ra and relatively high pH value formed a relatively stable vegetation community.
The plant species in the sampling sites with medium activities of (226)Ra and medium pH value formed the transitional vegetation community. The plant species in the sampling sites with relatively high activities of (226)Ra and relatively low pH value formed a simple unstable vegetation community that was similar to that on the unused grassland.
The activities of (226)Ra and transfer factors (TFs) varied greatly with the plant species.
The high activities of (226)Ra and TFs were found in the leaves of Pteris multifida (150.6 Bq/g of AW; 9.131), Pteridium aquilinum (122.2 Bq/g of AW; 7.409), and Dryopteris scottii (105.7 Bq/g of AW; 6.408).
They satisfied the criteria for a hyperaccumulator for (226)Ra. They may be the candidates for phytoremediation of (226)Ra in the uranium mill tailings impoundment areas and the contaminated soils around.
Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
KEYWORDS:
Hyperaccumulator; Mill tailings impoundment; Phytoremediation; Radium; Uranium; Vegetation composition
PMID:
24412774