Uranium isotopes in groundwater in Ho Chi Minh City and related issues:
Health risks, environmental effects, and mitigation methods
Nguyen Van Thang, Huynh Nguyen Phong Thu, Le Cong Hao
Journal of Contaminant Hydrology 245 (2022) 103941
Abstract:
Groundwater is regularly used for many purposes, such as drinking and agricultural irrigation systems. Still, it contains high levels of radionuclides (e.g., 238U, 232Th, and 226Ra) that are potentially hazardous to humans and the environment. In this study, activity concentrations of uranium isotopes were analyzed in 15 groundwater samples taken from 15 bored wells in Thu Duc district, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Environmental effects of the irrigation system with groundwater on agricultural soil in the study area were assessed by models. It was found that the activity concentrations of 238U and 234U in groundwater samples were in the ranges of (13.5–268.7) mBq l− 1 and (20.2–438.3) mBq l− 1, respectively. The ratio 234U/238U values were ranged from 1.12 to 2, with an average value of 1.44. Based on the model prediction, 25 years irrigation with the groundwater can inject 94.8 Bq both uranium isotopes in 1 kg topsoil. For investigated groundwater samples, the proposed removal method using K2FeO4 removed 74.28% and 81.04% for 234U and 238U, respectively.
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