Characterization of a military training site containing 232Thorium.

Understanding contaminant distribution is critical to selection and implementation of effective and affordable containment and remediation efforts. This article describes the characterization of soil containing thorium at a training site on Kirtland Air Force Base, Albuquerque, NM. The site has been used by the Defense Nuclear Weapons School since the early 1960's to train personnel in emergency response to nuclear weapons accidents and for characterization and containment of radioactive contamination. The purpose of work reported herein is to describe the primary location and migration pattern of 232Thorium (232Th) and 232Th progeny (decay products) at the site. Soil containing thorium oxide (ThO2) was applied to the site for approximately 30 years (early 1960-1990) and was used to simulate a plutonium release from a nuclear weapons accident. Data presented indicate that surface 232Th and 232Th progeny at approximately 5 times background levels are approaching test site boundaries. However, the data also indicate that vertical migration has not exceeded 0.9 m because of the insoluble nature of ThO2. The major mechanisms of 232Th mobility appear to be surface migration mediated by precipitation runoff and wind-blown soil.

Examination of in vivo influences on bioluminescent microbial assessment of corrosion product toxicity.

The composition of ionically dissolved and precipitated corrosion products from both free corrosion of ASTM F75 Co-Cr-Mo and galvanostatic polarization of Co-Cr-Mo and F138 316L stainless steel was determined using differential pulse polarography and inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy. A bacterial bioluminescence assay, Microtox, was used to assess the toxicity of the solid and dissolved corrosion products produced by galvanostatic polarization and the individual ions within them. The role of in vivo salinity, temperature, and protein content as modulators of corrosion product toxicity assessment was investigated empirically and mechanistically. Co-Cr-Mo products were found to be more toxic than those of 316L, and the most toxic ions were Cr6+, Ni2+, and Co2+. Ringer's solution potentiated the toxicity of the more toxic metal ions and reduced the toxicity of the less toxic ions. Using theoretical analysis in conjunction with experimental measurements, the ions in both alloys were found to interact in an antagonistic fashion. The presence of albumin was found to decrease metal toxicity, presumably by chelation.

Toxicity measurement of orthopedic implant alloy degradation products using a bioluminescent bacterial assay.

The toxicity of aqueous metal solutions representative of ionic degradation products from orthopedic implant alloys was determined using a bacterial bioluminescence assay, Microtox. The toxicity of forms of the individual elements released from ASTM F75 Co-Cr-Mo (Co-Cr-Mo), F138 316L stainless steel (316L), and F136 Ti-6Al-4V (Ti-6Al-4V) was first determined, and a mathematical model was developed to predict the toxicity of mixtures of these ions. Aqueous metal solutions were then mixed according to the proportions of the ions found in these alloys, and their toxicity was measured with Microtox. Mixture behavior was classified as synergistic, antagonistic, or additive by comparing measured toxicity to predicted toxicity. Since relating these tests to actual implant corrosion processes can be confounded by selective leaching, the predicted and measured toxicity of aqueous metal solutions mixed according to proportions representative of selective leaching were next determined, and the mixture behaviors were classified as before. The most toxic individual alloying elements were found to be hexavalent Cr, Ni, and Co, in that order: a finding in accord with prior biocompatibility research. Co-Cr-Mo was found to be the most toxic alloy mixture of both those combined according to alloy composition and those combined to reflect selective leaching. The Ti-6Al-4V mixtures were found to behave synergistically, while the Co-Cr-Mo and 316L mixtures behaved antagonistically. By providing insight into degradation product toxicity and elemental interaction, these experiments demonstrate the utility of employing bioluminescent bacterial assays to investigate biocompatibility of implant materials. Further studies to more closely simulate in vivo conditions, though, are required to fully gauge their potential in this regard.