Elevated uranium concentration and low activity ratio (234U/238U) in the Œuf river as the result of groundwater–surface water interaction (Essonne river valley, South of Paris Basin, France) - Archive ouverte HAL Accéder directement au contenu
Article Dans Une Revue Science of the Total Environment Année : 2023

Elevated uranium concentration and low activity ratio (234U/238U) in the Œuf river as the result of groundwater–surface water interaction (Essonne river valley, South of Paris Basin, France)

Résumé

Uranium (U) is a naturally occurring radioactive heavy metal widely distributed on Earth. Noticeable elevated U concentration and low activity ratio (AR) were occasionally detected in headwater stream of the Essonne river (Seine Basin, France), the namely Œuf river. This paper aims at providing new insight on geogenic U features in headwater streams and examines the role of river-groundwater interaction. The Œuf river was sampled four times in 2020 to investigate the influence of heterogeneous geology and hydrological seasonality. The dissolved fraction of water samples was analyzed for a variety of chemical parameters (anion, major, minor and trace element concentrations, isotopes 234U and 238U). The Œuf river was shown to exhibit elevated U concentration up to 19.3 μg L−1 (exceeding by 100-fold the value of 0.19 μg L−1 known for riverine average) and low AR down to 0.41 (almost the third of the value expected in surface water, i.e., 1.17). The Œuf river got enriched in U when receiving groundwater from Beauce Limestone Aquifer System. High U concentration (above 15 μg L−1) was found in association with low AR (below 0.5) in the stream water when flowing in the outcrop zone of one BLAS unit. Taking advantage of changes in the stream flow conditions and the geochemical contrast between surface and ground waters, mixing volumes were calculated. This study first examined the potential of using U isotopes in combination with selenium as hydrogeochemical tracers of the river-groundwater continuum. In HWS, the aquifer discharge was shown to supply 12 to 59 % of the river water. This study demonstrates the key role played by the river-groundwater interaction on river water chemistry in small streams draining catchment with various geology setting. It also supports the use of combining redox sensitive trace elements to track the river-groundwater continuum.
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Dates et versions

hal-04041118 , version 1 (04-04-2023)

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Paternité - Pas d'utilisation commerciale - Pas de modification

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Mathilde Zebracki, Christelle Marlin, Thierry Gaillard, Josselin Gorny, Olivier Diez, et al.. Elevated uranium concentration and low activity ratio (234U/238U) in the Œuf river as the result of groundwater–surface water interaction (Essonne river valley, South of Paris Basin, France). Science of the Total Environment, 2023, 876, pp.162537. ⟨10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.162537⟩. ⟨hal-04041118⟩
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