Mass balances by uranium-series disequilibria in natural phosphate deposits and mine products

In a closed system U-238 is in radioactive equilibrium with its longer lived daughters, U-234, Th-230, and Ra-226. In a system that is open on a time scale of 104 to 105 years, as in rock weathering, the various daughters and isotopes become separated. Nevertheless, equilibrium still pertains to the total system, so that material balances between weathering components and residual products can be calculated, based on parent-daughter radioactivity ratios. The authors have applied this balancing concept to the weathering of phosphatic ores in central Florida and to phosphate mining products. In the natural system studied in Florida, the leached zones are ten times more extensive than enriched zones, and have higher concentrations of Th-230 and Ra-226 relative to U-238 and U-234. Although there are significant movements of long-lived radio-elements locally, and occasional notable disequilibria of short-lived daughters, leaching by ground water is not a major factor in the regional budget. In the mining process, uranium follows the enriched phosphate and also the clay residues. Thorium and radium follow the clay residues and the gypsum by-product. Mine effluent waters, although somewhat higher in radioactivity than natural waters, do not remove appreciable amounts of the radio-elements