Sea water uptake, sediment transfer and histo-autoradiographic study of plutonium (239Pu) and americium (24lAm) in the edible cockle Cerastoderma edule

Abstract

laboratory experiments we investigated the uptake of americium 241 and plutonium 239 from labelled sea water or sediment by the suspension feeding cockle Cerastoderrna edule (Linne) as well as the localisation of these elements in its tissue. l n e t i c s of 2 3 9 Pa~nd 241Ama ccumulation by the cockle were identical for sea water contaminated at either Bq ml-' or mBq 1-l. In both cases, the cockles accumulated americium preferentially to plutonium. For the flesh, the concentration factor after a 60 d experiment was thus about 8 times higher for 241Am( CF = 1200) than for 2 3 9 P(~C F = 160).