Polonium 210Po in the phytobenthos from Puck Bay

Abstract

The aim of the work was to determine the ²¹⁰Po content in phytobenthos species (seaweeds and angiosperms) from Puck Bay (southern Baltic). Alpha spectrometry was used to measure and calculate the activities and concentrations of polonium ²¹⁰Po in the phytobenthos. The activity of ²¹⁰Po in Puck Bay waters was determined to estimate the bioconcentration factors (BCF) of these plants. The ²¹⁰Po concentration in water was estimated at 0.25 mBq dm⁻³. The lowest polonium concentration in the phytobenthos was found in Cladophora rupestris (0.12 Bq kg⁻¹ wet wt.), the highest in Chara crinita (1.12 Bq kg⁻¹ wet wt.). Polonium is accumulated in these phytobenthos species; the bioconcentration factors (BCF) ranged from 450 to 4400.