Mamuju is an area of high natural radiation in Indonesia with high natural radiation levels (average 613 nSv h⁻¹). Mamuju is anomalous due to its high average ²³⁸U and ²³²Th concentrations of 22,882 and 33,549 Bq kg⁻¹, respectively, in laterite and rock. High natural radionuclide concentrations of ²³⁸U, ²³²Th, and ⁴⁰K have also been reported in soil samples from several locations in Mamuju, including Botteng, Northern Botteng, Takandeang, Ahu, and Taan. High radiation levels are related to radioactive mineral occurrences in the Adang volcanic complex, comprised of phonolitoid and foiditoid lithologies. According to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), uranium deposits can be classified into several types, among them a volcanic-related deposits, which include three sub-types: stratabound, structure-bound, and volcano-sedimentary deposits. This study aims to characterize volcanic rock deposit sub-types in the Mamuju area based on uranium radioisotope measurements. The uranium isotopes were measured using a tandem quadrupole inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer combined with chemical separation by extraction chromatography using UTEVA resin. The analytical results for the ²³⁴U/²³⁸U ratios are used to determine the formation characteristics of minerals in each deposit sub-type based on mineral formation age, post-formation processes, and disturbances that affected the formation processes. Based on geochronological calculations using ²³⁴U/²³⁸U mineralization age, the deposits in the Mamuju area are 0.914–1.11 million years old and are classified as recent mineralization. These data have important implications for tracing uranium source rocks in the Mamuju area and may explain the anomalously high radiation levels in the Mamuju area.

Research of the depositional environment using geological mapping, petrography, gamma-ray (GR) log, palynology, and foraminifera fossils of the Bojongmanik Formation has led to the formation of several different conclusions about the transition to the marine environment, which are attractive to revisit. The expected results of this research are to determine the paleoenvironment of the Bojongmanik and Serpong Formations based on elemental geochemistry, the development of paleoenvironment proxies based on portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF) in fluvial to transitional environments studies, and the contribution of paleoenvironment analysis to GR-log facies interpretation. The research methodology starts with GR-log facies analysis, Pearson’s correlation, paleoenvironment analysis based on elemental affinity and elemental ratio, and comparing the paleoenvironment with GR-log-based facies. The paleoenvironment analysis based on elemental geochemistry resulted in the Bojongmanik Formation in the research area deposited at the tidal point bar, lagoon, and shoreface, while the Serpong Formation was deposited at the fluvial point bar and floodplain. Compared to previous research, the Bojongmanik Formation in the research area could be stratigraphically related to the upper Bojongmanik Formation. Proxies based on elemental geochemical affinities of carbonate-associated, carbonate-productivity, terrigenous-associated elements, and redox-sensitive trace elements show contrast changes between facies. Proxies based on the specific ratio show a detailed paleoenvironment for paleoclimate (Sr/Cu), paleosalinity (Sr/Ba), paleoredox (Cu/Zn), paleo-hydrodynamics and water depth (Zr/Rb and Fe/Mn), sediment provenance (Cr/Zr), and siliciclastic-dominated (Zr + Rb)/Sr. Adding a geochemistry element-based paleoenvironment analysis benefits from a more specific justification for GR-log facies interpretation.

Uranium merupakan bahan bakar utama reaktor nuklir yang memiliki energi besar. Uranium dapat dimanfaatkan sebagai bahan bakar reaktor nuklir yang dapat menghasilkan listrik dalam kapasitas yang sangat besar. Nuklir merupakan satu-satunya energi yang terbukti dapat dikembangkan di berbagai kondisi lingkungan dan dapat menghasilkan energi listrik secara terus-menerus tanpa emisi karbon dioksida dan polusi udara sehingga dapat dikatakan ramah lingkungan. Buku 50 Tahun Eksplorasi Uranium di Indonesia ini mengulas rangkuman kegiatan serta hasil penelitian dan pengembangan selama 50 tahun Pusat Teknologi Bahan Galian Nuklir (PTBGN) BATAN. Saat ini PTBGN telah berubah menjadi Pusat Riset Teknologi Daur Bahan Bakar Nuklir dan Limbah Radioaktif (PRTDBBNLR) BRIN. Membaca buku ini akan membawa Anda lebih memahami kegiatan eksplorasi uranium di Indonesia. Buku ini dapat menjadi sarana tepat untuk alih iptek bagi masyarakat dan generasi milenial untuk mendalami eksplorasi, penambangan, dan pengolahan uranium pada masa sekarang dan yang akan datang. Selamat Membaca!