Investigation of the environmental behavior of radium based on information at the molecular level

Yamaguchi, Akiko  

Radium (Ra) is essential for various fields, such as environmental chemistry and nuclear medicine. However, even the hydration structure of Ra remains unclear due to the difficulty in the Ra treatment, caused by the fact that Ra has no stable isotopes and forms radon, noble gas. This study measured the extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) of Ra to investigate its hydration structure and adsorption structures on clay minerals. The EXAFS results were consistent with our environmental analysis of core samples in a uranium mine.