Chapter 2 Radionuclides as Tracers and Timers of Processes in the Continental Environment – Basic Concepts and Methodologies

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the basic principles underlying the various applications of environmental radionuclides in tracer studies of terrestrial systems. There are two major groups of applications: (1) providing timescales of past and present processes and (2) tracing substances involved in terrestrial transport, exchange, and mixing processes. The applications of both groups are based on the phenomenon of radioactivity. Environmental radionuclides have the distinct advantage over injected (artificial) tracers in that they facilitate the study of various processes on a much larger temporal and spatial scale through their natural distribution in environmental systems. Thus, environmental radionuclides are unique tools in regional studies for investigating the time- and space-integrated characteristics of environmental systems. The use of injected artificial tracers is generally effective for site-specific local applications.