Thermal ionisation mass spectrometry (TIMS) in nuclear science and technology – a review

Abstract

The advances which have taken place during the last four decades in the instrumentation and applications of thermal ionisation mass spectrometry (TIMS) particularly of relevance to nuclear science and technology are highlighted.

Investigation of the crucial factors affecting accurate measurement of strontium isotope ratios by total evaporation thermal ionization mass spectrometry

“…Highly precise and accurate isotopic measurements are urgently required in multiple scientific areas such as the redefinition of the SI units, geochemistry, environment, geology, agriculture, nuclear science, archaeology, etc. Multi‐collector thermal ionization mass spectrometry (MC‐TIMS) is one of the state‐of‐the‐art techniques for high‐quality isotope analysis because its sources of uncertainty are relatively small and well understood .…”

“…Unfortunately, in practice, the isotopic ratios obtained by TE‐TIMS are affected by various factors, including inconsistency in the loading of sample, ionization temperature fluctuations, filament deformation caused by successive heating, isotopic ion loss, peak tailing, etc . Due to our poor understanding of these factors, inconsistent opinions on which kind of filament to use and the influence of loading sample amount have been reported over the past two decades.…”

“…Due to our poor understanding of these factors, inconsistent opinions on which kind of filament to use and the influence of loading sample amount have been reported over the past two decades. Some groups believed that a single filament source was not suitable for TE‐TIMS due to the change in its temperature throughout the TE process, while other groups have used a single filament source for Ra, B, Re, and Pb analysis. There have also been different opinions on the influence of sample amount.…”

Determination of uranium isotope ratios using a liquid sampling atmospheric pressure glow discharge/Orbitrap mass spectrometer system

“…Monitoring nuclear material in facilities can be facilitated by field deployable mass spectrometers . Currently, the field of isotope ratio analysis relies heavily on multi‐collector inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (MC‐ICP‐MS; the workhorse of the nuclear material isotopic analyses) and thermal ionization mass spectrometry (TIMS; considered the “gold standard”) . While these instruments have clear benefits, neither is capable of being deployed in the field given their size and the strict operating parameters and the infrastructure that each requires for operation.…”

Rapid paper spray mass spectrometry characterization of uranium and exemplar molecular species

“…Mass spectrometry has long been recognized as one of the most sensitive methods for the characterization of long‐lived actinides, but these techniques have been used primarily for the quantification of isotopic ratios or the characterization of inorganic contaminants rather than the identification and quantification of specific inorganic complexes. Paper spray ionization mass spectrometry (PSI‐MS) and the closely related swab touch spray ionization mass spectrometry have recently gained attention as versatile, ambient ionization techniques requiring minimal sample preparation and sample consumption for the direct analysis of blood, urine, and environmentally collected chemical warfare agent simulants .…”