natural radioactivity in motor oil? -Reply

[William McCabe <WMCCABE@tnrcc.state.tx.us>]

I'd recommend calling the American Petroleum Institute.  I
believe they've done some studies into this area, though
more in the arena of oil & gas NORM.  Though not
specifically covering motor oil, the following two references
contain info on U and Th and daughter radionuclides in
(crude) oil and gas:

"Geologic, Geochemical, and Geographic Controls on NORM
in Produced Water From Texas Oil, Gas, and Geothermal
Reservoirs."  R. Stephen Fisher. Bureau of Economic
Geology, The University of Texas at Austin.  Prepared for
USDOE Contract No. DE-AC22-92MT92011.  Oct 94.

"Diffuse NORM Wastes - Characterization and Preliminary
Risk Assessment."  (Draft) EPA Air & Remediation
(ANR-460). May 91.

Both of these have lots of references that may pan out for
you.

Will McCabe
TNRCC
Austin TX
512-239-2252
wmccabe@tnrcc.state.tx.us

>>> Kevin Meyer <qkv@ornl.gov> 22 Jan 97  09:54 >>>
Can anyone point me to some references on concentrations
of uranium,
thorium, and daughter radionuclides present in motor oil? I
realize that
the concentrations will vary widely depending on th source of
the crude and
the processing; at the moment I am just looking for some
ballpark numbers.
thanks,
Kevin Meyer
K25 Nondestructive Assay Facility
Oak Ridge, TN
kqv@ornl.gov
(423) 241-6714