Details
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | 2744 |
| Journal | Nature Communications |
| Volume | 11 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| Early online date | 9 Jun 2020 |
| Publication status | Published - Dec 2020 |
Abstract
Understanding the circumstances of the undeclared 2017 nuclear release of ruthenium that led to widespread detections of the radioisotope 106Ru in the Eurasian region, and whether it derives from a civilian or military source, is of major importance for society and future improvements in nuclear safety. Until now, the released nuclear material has merely been studied by analyzing short-lived radioisotopes. Here, we report precise measurements of the stable isotopic composition of ruthenium captured in air filters before, during, and after the nuclear release, and find that the ruthenium collected during the period of the 2017 nuclear release has a non-natural isotopic composition. By comparing our results with ruthenium isotopic compositions of spent nuclear fuels, we show that the release is consistent with the isotopic fingerprints of a civilian Russian water-water energetic reactor (VVER) fuel at the end of its lifetime, and is not related to the production of plutonium for nuclear weapons.
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Chemistry(all)
- General Chemistry
- Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology(all)
- General Biochemistry,Genetics and Molecular Biology
- Physics and Astronomy(all)
- General Physics and Astronomy
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In: Nature Communications, Vol. 11, No. 1, 2744, 12.2020.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer review
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Non-natural ruthenium isotope ratios of the undeclared 2017 atmospheric release consistent with civilian nuclear activities
AU - Hopp, Timo
AU - Zok, Dorian
AU - Kleine, Thorsten
AU - Steinhauser, Georg
N1 - Funding Information: We acknowledge financial support by the VolkswagenStiftung (Az. 94403). This research received funding to T.K. from the European Research Council under the European Community’s Seventh Framework Program (FP7/2007–2013 Grant Agreement 616564 ‘ISOCORE’). The authors benefited greatly from constructive comments on an earlier draft of the paper by G. A. and C. R. Brennecka.
PY - 2020/12
Y1 - 2020/12
N2 - Understanding the circumstances of the undeclared 2017 nuclear release of ruthenium that led to widespread detections of the radioisotope 106Ru in the Eurasian region, and whether it derives from a civilian or military source, is of major importance for society and future improvements in nuclear safety. Until now, the released nuclear material has merely been studied by analyzing short-lived radioisotopes. Here, we report precise measurements of the stable isotopic composition of ruthenium captured in air filters before, during, and after the nuclear release, and find that the ruthenium collected during the period of the 2017 nuclear release has a non-natural isotopic composition. By comparing our results with ruthenium isotopic compositions of spent nuclear fuels, we show that the release is consistent with the isotopic fingerprints of a civilian Russian water-water energetic reactor (VVER) fuel at the end of its lifetime, and is not related to the production of plutonium for nuclear weapons.
AB - Understanding the circumstances of the undeclared 2017 nuclear release of ruthenium that led to widespread detections of the radioisotope 106Ru in the Eurasian region, and whether it derives from a civilian or military source, is of major importance for society and future improvements in nuclear safety. Until now, the released nuclear material has merely been studied by analyzing short-lived radioisotopes. Here, we report precise measurements of the stable isotopic composition of ruthenium captured in air filters before, during, and after the nuclear release, and find that the ruthenium collected during the period of the 2017 nuclear release has a non-natural isotopic composition. By comparing our results with ruthenium isotopic compositions of spent nuclear fuels, we show that the release is consistent with the isotopic fingerprints of a civilian Russian water-water energetic reactor (VVER) fuel at the end of its lifetime, and is not related to the production of plutonium for nuclear weapons.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85086150246&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1038/s41467-020-16316-3
DO - 10.1038/s41467-020-16316-3
M3 - Article
C2 - 32518383
AN - SCOPUS:85086150246
VL - 11
JO - Nature Communications
JF - Nature Communications
SN - 2041-1723
IS - 1
M1 - 2744
ER -