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3609 Isozaki-cho, Hitachinaka-shi, Ibaraki 311-1202
Tel: 029-265-7141, Fax: 029-265-9214
Collection of data on marine radioecology
The Nakaminato Laboratory for Marine Radioecology belongs
to the Research Center for Radiation Protection. It is the only external laboratory
located at the
seashore of Hitachinaka City, Ibaraki. Its role is to provide data necessary
for dose evaluation and modeling of radionuclides in the marine ecosystems
by clarifying their behavior, isotopic ratio, and other characteristics.
Studies on global and environmental issues
The laboratory uses external funds to study the distribution
and behavior of artificial radionuclides in the oceans and also to conduct
studies concerning
environmental problems using natural radionuclides as tracers.
Research fields cover local coastal areas
and global open ocean
Studies are carried out in local areas such as the coastal
waters off Rokkasho Village in Aomori and open oceans such as the Pacific and
Indian Oceans. These
studies are conducted by all the researchers in the Laboratory including
senior and postdoctoral researchers with support from the Management Section
and the
Technical Development for Marine Environmental Study Section.
Large Volume in situ Filtration/Concentration System
This system filters several tons of seawater to collect particulate radionuclides
of different sizes. At the same time, it concentrates dissolved radionuclides
onto adsorbents. Concentration of ultra trace radionuclides with various
chemical forms in seawater can be measured with this system.