The application of radiochronometry during the 4th collaborative materials exercise of the nuclear forensics international technical working group (ITWG)
Journal article, 2018

In a recent international exercise, 10 international nuclear forensics laboratories successfully performed radiochronometry on three low enriched uranium oxide samples, providing 12 analytical results using three different parent-daughter pairs serving as independent chronometers. The vast majority of the results were consistent with one another and consistent with the known processing history of the materials. In general, for these particular samples, mass spectrometry gave more accurate and more precise analytical results than decay counting measurements. In addition, the concordance of the U-235-Pa-231 and U-234-Th-230 chronometers confirmed the validity of the age dating assumptions, increasing confidence in the resulting conclusions.

Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry

Nuclear forensics

Radiochronometry

Uranium oxide

Thermal ionization mass spectrometry

Alpha spectrometry

Gamma spectrometry

Author

Michael J. Kristo

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

Ross Williams

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

Amy M. Gaffney

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

Theresa M. Kayzar-Boggs

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

Kerri C. Schorzman

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

Petra Lagerkvist

Swedish Defence Research Agency (FOI)

Anna Vesterlund

Chalmers, Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Energy and Material

Swedish Defence Research Agency (FOI)

Henrik Ramebäck

Swedish Defence Research Agency (FOI)

Chalmers, Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Energy and Material

Aubrey N. Nelwamondo

South African Nuclear Energy Corporation (NECSA)

Deon Kotze

South African Nuclear Energy Corporation (NECSA)

Kyuseok Song

Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute

Sang Ho Lim

Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute

Sun-Ho Han

Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute

Chi-Gyu Lee

Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute

Ayako Okubo

Japan Atomic Energy Agency

Didier Maloubier

The French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA)

Daniele Cardona

The French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA)

Pavel Samuleev

Royal Military College of Canada

Ike Dimayuga

Canadian Nucl Labs

Zsolt Varga

European Commission (EC)

Maria Wallenius

European Commission (EC)

Klaus Mayer

European Commission (EC)

Elaine Loi

Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation

Elizabeth Keegan

Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation

Jennifer Harrison

Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation

Sangeeth Thiruvoth

Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation

Floyd E. Stanley

Los Alamos National Laboratory

Khal J. Spencer

Los Alamos National Laboratory

Lav Tandon

Los Alamos National Laboratory

Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry

0236-5731 (ISSN) 1588-2780 (eISSN)

Vol. 315 2 425-434

Subject Categories

Mineral and Mine Engineering

Subatomic Physics

Analytical Chemistry

DOI

10.1007/s10967-017-5680-5

More information

Latest update

5/8/2018 6