Transport of radioactive ions in soil by electrokinetics

An electrokinetic approach is being evaluated for in situ soil remediation at the Hanford Site in Richland, Washington. This approach uses an applied electric field to induce transport of both radioactive and hazardous waste ions in soil. The work discussed in this paper involves the development of a new method to monitor the movement of the radioactive ions within the soil during the electrokinetic process. A closed cell and a gamma counter were used to provide in situ measurements of 137Cs and 60Co movement in hanford soil. Preliminary results show that for an applied potential of 200 V over approximately 200 hr, 137Cs and 60Co were transported a distance of 4 to 5 in. The monitoring technique demonstrated the feasibility of using electrokinetics for soil separation applications