Forensic investigation of plutonium metal: a case study of CRM 126

Byerly, Benjamin L.; Stanley, Floyd E.; Spencer, Khalil J.; Colletti, Lisa P.; Garduno, Katherine; Kuhn, Kevin J.; Lujan, Elmer; Martinez, Alex; Porterfield, Donivan R.; Rim, Jung H.; Schappert, Michael Francis; Thomas, Mariam R.; Townsend, Lisa; Xu, N.; Tandon, Lav

doi:10.1007/s10967-016-4919-x

Cited by 20 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…The isotope ratios measured in the Pu QC solution agreed with the values from the certificate and with the results published by Byerly et al [18]. The exception was the n ( 238 Pu)/n ( 239 Pu) ratio, where a higher value was obtained in the TIMS measurement.…”

Section: Verification Measurements Of Qc Solutionssupporting

confidence: 90%

Preparation and characterisation of uranium and plutonium quality control samples for isotope dilution mass spectrometry measurements and uncertainty estimation

Venchiarutti

Rozle

Hennessy

et al. 2021

J Radioanal Nucl Chem

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This paper presents the preparation, characterisation and validation of two quality control (QC) samples for the measurement of plutonium and uranium contents by isotope dilution mass spectrometry (IDMS). These two QC samples were then used at the JRC-Geel G.2′s laboratory to monitor the performance of IDMS measurement results in line with the ISO 17025 and ISO 17034. The QC samples were prepared from two certified reference materials, namely the NBL-126 (Pu) and CRM 116-A (U). The values for the 235U and 239Pu amount contents of the QC samples were assigned based on the gravimetric preparation of the solutions and verified by independent IDMS measurements. Their use as part of a broader in-house spike inter-calibration campaign, notably during participations in proficiency tests, is also highlighted. Finally, using these two IDMS QC samples, a detailed approach to the IDMS uncertainty evaluation, according to the Guide to the expression of uncertainty in measurement (GUM, 2008) is presented on various examples.

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Section: Verification Measurements Of Qc Solutionssupporting

confidence: 90%

Preparation and characterisation of uranium and plutonium quality control samples for isotope dilution mass spectrometry measurements and uncertainty estimation

Venchiarutti

Rozle

Hennessy

et al. 2021

J Radioanal Nucl Chem

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“…Such material can be applied in nuclear forensics to determine accurately the model age of plutonium (Pu) materials, i.e. the time elapsed since its last chemical purification, via 241 Am/ 241 Pu chronometry [7][8][9][10][11], in radiation waste management for characterisation of irradiated nuclear fuel/ waste for long-term disposal at geological repositories [12], and in nuclear decay data application for the determination of nuclear half-lives.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

243Am certified reference material for mass spectrometry

Rozle

Fankhauser

Yetunde

et al. 2021

J Radioanal Nucl Chem

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The Joint Research Centre, in cooperation with the Commissariat à l’Energie Atomique et aux Energies Alternatives, produced a novel 243Am spike reference material for mass spectrometry. Americium solution with an isotopic composition of 88% 243Am and 12% 241Am was used as the source for the preparation of the spike material. The certified value of 5.696 (11) nmol g−1 for the amount content of 243Am and 0.136138 (54) for the n(241Am)/n(243Am) amount ratio were assigned. The assigned values from mass spectrometry were confirmed by alpha-particle spectrometry, alpha-particle counting at a defined solid angle, and high-resolution gamma-ray spectrometry. Furthermore, an external validation of the certified values was obtained from the results of an interlaboratory comparison exercise, using this americium reference solution as the test sample.

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“…To achieve adequate isotope-abundance measurements with high precision and accuracy of both radioactive and stable isotopes, IRMS employs a combination of high-energy ionization and double focusing mass analysis equipped with multiple Faraday-collector detectors to minimize correlated noise. 16 For liquid samples, thermal-ionization mass spectrometry (TIMS) 17 and inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) 18 are employed. Direct analysis of solid materials requires laser ablation coupled to ICP-MS (LA-ICP-MS) 19 or secondary ionization MS (SIMS).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%