Identification and analysis of a radioactive particle in a marine sediment sample

A radioactive particle was identified in a marine sediment sample. Characteristics of the particle were determined using various methods. Particle isolation and preliminary activity estimation were performed using gamma-ray spectrometry and autoradiography. Long-lived radionuclides were detected in the particle using alpha-, beta- and gamma-ray analyses. Particle size and elemental composition were determined using SEM. Elemental composition, nuclide composition and structure suggest that the particle may have originated from the Chernobyl accident. The present study shows that routinely used laboratory methods/procedures in environmental radiation detection are not necessarily appropriate for analyses of individual particles as they are (too much) focused on radiation monitoring and not on characterization of radioactive materials.