Absorption of plutonium compounds in the respiratory tract

In order to optimise the monitoring of potentially exposed workers, it is desirable to determine specific values of absorption for the compounds handled. This study derives specific values of absorption rates for different chemical forms of plutonium from in vitro and animal (monkeys, dogs, mice, rats) experiments, and from human contamination cases. Different published experimental data have been reinterpreted here to derive values for the absorption parameters, f(r), s(r) and s(s), used in the human respiratory tract model currently adopted by the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP). The consequences of the use of these values were investigated by calculating related committed effective doses per unit intake. Average and median estimates were calculated for f(r), s(r), and s(s) for each plutonium compound, that can be used as default values for specific chemical forms instead of the current reference types. Nevertheless, it was shown that the use of the current ICRP reference absorption types provides reasonable approximations. Moreover, this work provides estimates of the variability in pulmonary absorption and, therefore, facilitates analyses of the uncertainties associated with assessments, either from bioassay measurements or from prospective calculations, of intake and dose.