Evaluation of Deuterium Oxide Deposition Velocity Over a Forest Environment

Abstract

Field experiments were performed to evaluate the deposition velocity of tritium oxide within a forest environment at the Savannah River Site near Aiken, SC. Field releases were designed to guide selection of deposition velocity values for use in safety-basis modeling. Six releases of deuterium oxide were conducted in 2020 and 2021 with corresponding air samples during and following each release. Samples were analyzed to determine the deuterium-to-hydrogen ratio in water and converted to concentrations of deuterium in the air during the experiment. Measurements were compared to prior model simulations to evaluate model performance and deposition velocity estimates. Field releases demonstrated vertical and horizontal mixing of a plume in a forest. Predicted deposition velocities ranged from 2.4 to 5.4 cm s−1 on average. In all cases, model simulations underpredicted deuterium concentration by 1 to 2 orders of magnitude, indicating the model does not sufficiently mix the plume into the forest. While the model underestimated the transfer of material downward through the forest, it does suggest that the model’s estimates are conservative for making downwind dose estimates because of lower plume depletion, leading to higher concentration and dose estimates. While the field releases do not cover all possible meteorological conditions, we conclude it is appropriate to use a non-zero deposition velocity when performing safety-basis modeling of tritium oxide based on conservatism within the model. A recommendation of 1.0 cm s−1 as a deposition velocity is made, which is beyond the 95th percentile value estimated from the prior modeling study.