STUDY OF TELLURIUM-129m (129mTe) GROUND DEPOSITION FOLLOWING FUKUSHIMA NUCLEAR DISASTER: DESCRIPTIVE ANALYSIS OF UNSCEAR DATABASE USING STATISTICAL PROCESS TECHNIQUES

Abstract

One of the most shocking accidents that have impacted the world recently was the devastation of the Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear power plant following a major earthquake followed by a strong 15-meter Tsunami wave affecting the east coast region. One of the major adverse consequences of this catastrophic event is the release and dissemination of radioactive materials in the surrounding environment. Tellurium-129m is one of the comprehensively traced fission products to assess the magnitude of spreading by measuring ground soil deposition of radioactivity. Radiation level/location relationship study was tested using a simple and inexpensive statistical software package using unique Statistical Process Control methodologies for the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation database that demonstrated spiking in radioactivity. Sampling points were geographically associated with the radioactivity level with the spot of the maximum radionuclide concentration could be linked with the damaged plant location. More than three-fifths of the measured radioactivity are confined in an area of about 640 km² covering five municipalities namely Namie, and Futaba towns, Litate village and Iwaki city. The latitude-oriented chart showed a sudden rise in deposition followed by a gradual decline. Excessive Tellurium-129m activity could be observed in the area of the catastrophic event.

Keywords

• Control Chart
• Fukushima
• Tellurium
• Pareto
• PCA

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