Speciation of Uranium in Seepage and Pore Waters of Heavy Metal-Contaminated Soil

The uranium speciation in natural occurring seepage water samples, and in soil water samples, all samples from test site “Gessenwiese”, were analyzed by Time-resolved Laser-induced Fluorescence Spectroscopy (TRLFS). Test site Gessenwiese was installed as a part of a research program of the Friedrich Schiller University Jena for investigations within the area of a recultivated former uranium mining heap close to Ronneburg (Eastern Thuringia).
Those investigations revealed that the uranium speciation in that seepage water is dominated by the uranium (VI) sulfate species UO2SO4(aq). The analyses were performed to compare presented results in a later stage with the uranium speciation in plants, which grow on the grassland test site Gessenwiese. It was showed that TRFLS is a useful tool for clearing up the speciation of uranium in water, which is affiliated by plants.