Intensity of radionuclide accumulation by Onobrychis arenaria during its cultivation in Polesie

Abstract

The purpose of the article is to study the intensity of accumulation of 137Cs, 40K, 226Ra, 232Th by above-ground vegetative mass, seeds and flower pollen of Onobrychis arenaria. Methods. The research was carried out in Polesie, in the city of Korosten. For the experiment, Onobrychis arenaria was used, which was sown using the generally accepted technology in four-fold repetition. Soil samples were taken by the “envelope” method from five different plots at a depth of 22-25 cm. Then the samples were thoroughly mixed to obtain a homogeneous mass, from which a representative sample weighing 500 g was isolated for further laboratory studies. Above-ground vegetative mass, seeds and bee bread (flower pollen) were taken by point sampling. The specific activity of radionuclides (137Cs, 40K, 226Ra and 232Th) in the soil and plant mass was determined by the gamma-spectrometric method. The results were processed biometrically, taking into account the arithmetic mean, standard deviation and the reliability of the difference. Results. The study found that in all parts of the Onobrychis arenaria (vegetative mass, seeds and flower pollen), the highest content of radionuclides was in 40K.The total specific activity of radionuclides in the sand sainfoin harvest was 2230.4 Bq/kg, of which the largest share was in the vegetative mass (43.43%), while the seeds and flower pollen contained 28.52% and 29.03%, respectively.Conclusions. The studies showed that the highest specific activity of radionuclides in the Onobrychis arenaria harvest was observed for 40K. Radionuclides accumulated in theharvest in the following sequence (in descending order): 40K, 137Cs, 232Th, 226Ra. The total activity of radionuclides concentrated in the harvest from one hectare is 2230.4 Bq.