FOSSILIZED BIOMATS AS THE POSSIBLE SOURCE OF HIGH NATURAL RADIONUCLIDE CONTENT AT THE JURASSIC ÚRKÚT MANGANESE ORE DEPOSIT, HUNGARY, Carpathian Journal of Earth and Environmental Sciences, August 2018, Vol. 13, No. 2, p. 477 - 487; DOI:10.26471/cjees/2018/013/041 - Carpathian Journal of Earth And Environmental Sciences

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Ildikó GYOLLAI¹, Márta POLGÁRI1,^2*, Lóránt BÍRÓ¹, Tamás VIGH³, Tibor KOVÁCS⁴ & Elemér PÁL-MOLNÁR⁵

¹Research Centre for Astronomy and Geosciences, Geobiomineralization and Astrobiological Research Group, Institute for Geological and Geochemical Research, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, 1112 Budapest, Budaörsi str. 45, Hungary, e-mail: rodokrozit@gmail.com, gyildi@gmail.com

²Eszterházy Károly University, Department of Natural Geography and Geoinformatics, 3300 Eger, Leányka str. 6/C, Hungary

³Mangán Ltd, Úrkút, Külterület 1. 8409 Hungary, e-mail: drvightamas@gmail.com

⁴Institute of Radiochemistry and Radioecology, University of Pannonia, Egyetem str. 10, Veszprém, H-8200, Hungary, Phone: +36 88 624-789, Fax: +36 88 624-178, e-mail: kt@almos.uni-pannon.hu

⁵Szeged University, Department of Mineralogy, Geochemistry and Petrology ‘Vulcano’ Petrology and Geochemistry Research Group, 6722 Szeged, Egyetem str. 2, Hungary, e-mail: palm@geo.u-szeged.hu, *corresponding author

FOSSILIZED BIOMATS AS THE POSSIBLE SOURCE OF HIGH NATURAL RADIONUCLIDE CONTENT AT THE JURASSIC ÚRKÚT MANGANESE ORE DEPOSIT, HUNGARY, Carpathian Journal of Earth and Environmental Sciences, August 2018, Vol. 13, No. 2, p. 477 - 487; DOI:10.26471/cjees/2018/013/041

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The ²²⁰Rn and ²²²Rn concentration in the Úrkút Manganese Formation is anomalously high, and it causes health risk for the attendants of the Úrkút Manganese Mine. In this study we suggest a new model for the high ratio of different natural radionuclides by the new genetic model of the Úrkút Manganese Formation. Fossilized Fe-rich biomats were found in the whole section of the deposit. Based on these, the formation of different types of Mn-ores by one or two step microbial mediation can be assumed. The biomats represent large amounts of organic matter offering large surfaces with negative ligands, as well as poorly ordered mineral phases like ferrihydrite and clay minerals with large and reactive surfaces. These features offer high capability of cation binding, among them ions of radioactive elements, which could be fixed on the active or inactive organic matter, as well as on mineral surfaces. The decay of fixed nuclides could result high ²²⁰Rn and ²²²Rn concentration in the Úrkút Mine.