Modelling the transfer of ³H and ¹⁴C into the environment – lessons learnt from IAEA's EMRAS project

“Horia Hulubei” National Institute for Physics and Nuclear Engineering, Department of Life and Environmental Physics, 407 Atomistilor St., Bucharest-Magurele, POB MG-6, 077125, Romania

Abstract

Future development of nuclear energy in the frame of climate change and sustainable development needs an increased safety and consequently, robust models of environmental transfer of radionuclides. Tritium and Carbon are life elements and must be treated separately from trace elements. The IAEA promoted EMRAS (Environmental Modelling for Radiation Safety) project in order to decrease uncertainties in the predictive capability of environmental models, including the cases of aquatic and biota. To understand the processes and models reliability, nine scenarios have been developed. The Working Group contributed to the Revision of “Handbook of parameter values for the prediction of radionuclide transfer in temperate environments” TRS 364, as well. The main task of this paper is to propose ways for models' predictive power improvements, based on lessons learnt from EMRAS' exercises.