Determination of the vertical distribution of radioelements (K, U, Th, Cs) in soils from portable HP-Ge spectrometer measurements: A tool for soil erosion studies

Jérôme Perrin (1) , F. Carrier (1) , L. Guillot (2)

1 BRGM - Bureau de Recherches Géologiques et Minières (BRGM)
2 CEA - Commissariat à l'énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives

Soil erosion studies, based on the 137Cs technique, require a lot of time-consuming cores to determine soil loss or gain. We show that portable HP-Ge spectrometer can be used to determine the content and the distribution in the soil of natural and artificial radionuclides. Simulations of gamma-rays transport throughout the soil profile used a Monte Carlo code. The methodology requires a unique undisturbed coring site to build the models, calibrate the spectrometer readings and derive soil denudation or accumulation thickness.

Keywords: Gamma-ray spectrometry; Monte Carlo simulation; Soil erosion; Radionuclide distribution; Absorption effect

Domains: Earth Sciences

Jérôme Perrin, F. Carrier, L. Guillot. Determination of the vertical distribution of radioelements (K, U, Th, Cs) in soils from portable HP-Ge spectrometer measurements: A tool for soil erosion studies. Applied Radiation and Isotopes, 2006, 64 (7), pp.830-843. ⟨10.1016/j.apradiso.2006.01.003⟩. ⟨hal-03752350⟩