Laboratory and field studies related to the Radionuclide Migration project: Progress report, October 1, 1986-September 30, 1987

In this report we describe the research done by personnel of the Los Alamos National Laboratory in support of the Radionuclide Migration project during FY 1987. We are engaged in collecting data concerning the movement of radionuclides at three locations on the Nevada Test Site. We continue to monitor the elution of tritium and krypton from the RNM-2S well at the Cambric site and have described in detail the elution of {sup 36}Cl from the same well. The data from this field study provide us with the opportunity to test the validity of several models of solute transport through geologic media. We have detected tritium and fission products in a water sample from the hole UE20n #1, which was drilled this year at the Cheshire site on Pahute Mesa. We are also continuing our efforts to learn how radionuclides have moved in test areas 3 and 4 near the Aleman site. Our laboratory work this year includes (1) a characterization of the size and density of two stable plutonium(IV) colloid suspensions prepared by different techniques and (2) a study of the transmission of colloidal-size polystyrene beads through crushed-rock columns. 18 refs., 7 figs., 9 tabs