[ RadSafe ] UO{2,3} dissolved: which increases?

[Ben Fore]

Dan,

You are absolutely correct at a neutral pH when carbonate is present.
In that case the fraction of uranyl increases, and is soluble.  Does
most irrigation water contain substantial enough amounts of dissolved
carbonate to allow UO2 to oxidize?

In that case coal fly ash contains nowhere near the volume of soluble
uranyl compounds as irrigation water.  But those are both background
sources, unless there is a locally rich concentration of U(VI) or (IV)
leachate, or very close proximity to an unscrubbed coal smokestack.

Nether has the potential in a lifetime to exceed the possible soluble
uranyl dose from being 100 m downwind of a 5 kg uranium fire.

James Salsman, as Ben Fore