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Integrated separation scheme for measuring a suite of fission and activation products from a fresh mixed fission and activation product sample

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Abstract

Mixed fission and activation materials resulting from various nuclear processes and events contain a wide range of isotopes for analysis spanning almost the entire periodic table. This work describes the production of a complex synthetic sample containing fission products, activation products, and irradiated soil, and determines the percent chemical recovery of select isotopes through the integrated chemical separation scheme. Based on the results of this experiment, a complex synthetic sample can be prepared with low atom/fission ratios and isotopes of interest accurately and precisely measured following an integrated chemical separation method.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to acknowledge the staff of the Washington State University Nuclear Radiation Center for their assistance in irradiating the materials used to prepare the complex radiological sample and the Office for Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation Research and Development for funding this work. The authors would also like to thank Mike Cantaloub and Truc Trang-le for their gamma spectroscopy expertise.

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Correspondence to Shannon M. Morley.

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Morley, S.M., Seiner, B., Finn, E. et al. Integrated separation scheme for measuring a suite of fission and activation products from a fresh mixed fission and activation product sample. J Radioanal Nucl Chem 304, 509–515 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-014-3826-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-014-3826-2

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