Determining cerium in plutonium by anion exchange and x-ray fluorescence

Abstract

This report describes a procedure for determining cerium in plutonium using an anion-exchange separation and x-ray fluorescence. We add lanthanum to the plutonium solution as an internal standard, oxidize the plutonium to Pu +4 , and pass the solution through an anion-exchange column with 8M HC1. The Pu +4 sorbs to the resin, and the cerium and lanthanum pass through the column completely. We evaporate the solution containing the cerium and the lanthanum to 0.5 mL for pipetting onto a resin paper disc. The Pu +4 is eluttd off the column using 0.1M HC1. We then measure the K Q x-ray line for both cerium and lanthanum. The ratio of cerium to lanthanum for the sample is then compared with those from the standards. This method has a precision of 2.8% relative standard deviation for cerium over a concentration range of 0.1 to 5% cerium.

Optimization of a dried residue specimen preparation method for quantifying analytes in plutonium metal using WDXRF

“…Analytical methods for quantifying elements in plutonium metal are critical to numerous nuclear materials applications. A straightforward method for quantifying gallium in plutonium metal by WDXRF has been previously reported (Martell and Hansel, 1988; Worley, 2003). In this process the metal was dissolved with HCl, and the plutonium was removed with ion exchange chromatography to minimize the amount of radioactive material analyzed outside of a glove box and eliminate matrix effects.…”