1. Minority Access To Research Careers

2. By, Nicholas G. Beltran beltrann@nmsu.edu Mentor: Dr. Antonio S. Lara alara@nmsu.edu Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry

3. Appropriate solution to uranium contamination has a great impact on citizens worldwide, especially New Mexicans and people along the US-Mexico border.

4.  Uranium is toxic  Radioactivity  Chemical toxicity  People are vulnerable to toxic uranium water – this is especially true in New Mexico  New Mexico is the uranium capital of the world (Grants, NM)  New surge in uranium mining expected

5. Currently FAST, INEXPENSIVE method to remove uranium from water DOES NOT EXIST

6.  Uranium is a naturally- occurring element  All are alpha emitters  If incorporated into the body may cause health effects Chemical Toxicity U-238 Half-life in years 4.5x10 9 Natural abundance 99.3% Radioactivity U-235 Half-life in years 7.0x10 8 Natural abundance 0.72% Other U-234 Half-life in years 245,500 Natural abundance 0.005%

8.  Rocks / Soil  Air  Water  Food  EPA Setting Standards for Safe Drinking water (Uranium has a limit of 30 parts per billion)

9.  Radioactive (U-235) Natural abundance 0.72%  Chromosomal damage  Alpha particles get into the body and are destructive to tissue and cells  Chromosomal breakage may result in translocation  Genetic mutations  May cause birth defects in future generations

10.  Chemical toxicity (U-238) Natural abundance 99.3%  Heavy metal chemistry (Poisonous to humans)  Kidney damage  U deposits in the brain from the blood stream  Risk for developing nervous system toxicity as a result of uranium accumulation in the brain.

11. Re-opening of U mines With the re-opening of U mines, there will be an increase of exposure

14. Eastern AUM Region

15.  Readily Available  Manageable  Inexpensive  Large surface area  Cation Exchange Capacity 

16. Berino SoilGallup Soil

17. Gallup Grants Gallup Grants

18.  Inductively Coupled Plasma / Mass Spectrograph Versus  LS 55 Luminescence Spectrometer  ICP/MS  Very sensitive down to 1 ppb  But, volume does not remain constant  LS 55 Luminescence Spectrometer  Volume of the sample remains constant  Volume and Soil Surface Area used as a control  But, limit of detection ~500 ppb

19. Excitation 245 nm Emission 515 nm  LS 55 Luminescence Spectrometer  Phosphorescence measurement

20.  Uranium Nitrate or Uranyl Nitrate UO 2 (NO 3 ) 2 6H 2 O  When exposed to ultraviolet light, U is visible as a faint green glow Uranyl Nitrate 100 ppm phosphorescing

21.  LS 55 Luminescence Spectrometer  Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS)  QUASI  Binding site distribution  Inductively Coupled Plasma / Mass Spectrograph (ICP/MS)

22.  For a complete solution to uranium contamination  Bacterial Field Assay  Provide reliable detection of toxicity in potential drinking water.  Is there something else?

23.  EPA. (2006) Uranium Location Database Compilation. EPA 402-R-05-009. Office of Radiation and Indoor Air, Radiation Protection Division (6608J), Washington, DC. Available at http://www.epa.gov/radiation/docs/tenorm/402-r-05-009.pdf  Southwest Research and Information Center (SRIC). (2007) Uranium Impact Assessment Program. Available at http://www.sric.org/uranium/  Environmental & Occupational Health. Available at http://www.gulflink.osd.mil/medsearch/EnviornmentalOccupationa/DepletedUranium_home.shtml  http://www.viaggimagazine.it/VM/guide/stati-uniti/cartina-new-mexico.jpg  National Institutes of Health (NIH) Grant No. GMO 7667-30  Minority Access to Research Careers (MARC) Program  Special thanks to Dr. Lara, Dr. Parra, Dr. Ulery

24. Any questions, comments, concerns?

25. By, Nicholas G. Beltran beltrann@nmsu.edu Mentor: Dr. Antonio S. Lara alara@nmsu.edu Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry