Variability of atmospheric depositions of artificial radiolements and their transfer into soils

A researcher in society... Since the start of my thesis research (October 1993), my work has focused on the behaviour of artificial radioelements firstly in the geosphere and then in the biosphere. Research in these domains must directly or indirectly provide answers to very strong societal concerns relating to the consequences of artificial radioelements on man and the environment. The artificial radioelements produced by civil and military activities and discharged into the environment present indeed potential hazards due to the high radiotoxicity of the emitted substances. Harm to man by external irradiation, inhalation or ingestion, is conditioned by processes likely to increase or decrease the activity of a radioelement in the environment, from the source term (waste from nuclear plants, polluted sediments or soils, etc.). To understand the behaviour of artificial radioelements, many factors that can mobilize the radioelements must be taken into account, such as water/rock interactions, hydrological conditions, biogeochemical cycles, bioavailability in soils, etc.