Re: Rad Content in Oil -Reply

[DAVID HARRISON <DHARRISON@doe.lanl.gov>]

Schoenhofer and S.A. McElhaney, about 8 years ago, also, I performed a
rad survey on a liquid petroleum storage tank at a fractionation plant near
Grand Junction, CO.  At the liquid/gas interface there was definitely
above-background radiation levels.  What that level was I'll have to dig
through 8 years of pack rat material.  Give me a couple of days.

DHARRISON@DOE.LANL.GOV

>>> Schoenhofer <schoenho@via.at> 07/03/96 03:35pm >>>
At 09:12 1996-07-03 -0500, you wrote:
>Does anyone know the amount of rad content normally measured in
petroleum=
 oils?
>
>Thanks,
>
>S.A. McElhaney
>LMES K-25 Site
>mcelhaneys@ornl.gov
>
>=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=
=3D
>
>I can=B4t give you information on petroleum oils, but probably you are
also interested in natural radionuclides which might be of importance for
the oil industry:

Natural gas contains radon which might become enhanced when stored
in natural underground storages. The radon is concentrated in the
course of manufacturing "liquid gas" from natural gas. Daughter products
will accumulate in the pipes and on the surfaces of pumps etc. in contact
with the liquid gas. There was an interesting paper of Howard Prichard
in Health
Physics on this subject about 8 years ago, if I remember correctly. He
found no health hazards from the storage tanks, but workers working
with repair of pipes and pumps should protect themselves from aerosols
which will be formed when grinding or polishing of surfaces is
performed. (At least I think that
Howard wrote this.)=20

Since radon is soluble in hydrocarbons crude oil will contain also certain
amounts of radon, but I can=B4t imagine any health hazard from it.

Water which is in contact with oil below ground usually contains small
amounts of uranium and other radionuclides.=20

Franz Schoenhofer
Federal Institute for Food Control and Research - Radiochemistry
Vienna, Austria
Schoenhofer
Habichergasse 31/7
A-1160 Wien
Tel./Fax:	+43-1-4955308
Tel.:		+43-664-3380333 e-mail:		schoenho@via.at