Issue 8, 2021

Nd, Am and Cm isotopic measurements after simultaneous separation in transmutation irradiated samples

Abstract

In this work, High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) separation followed by Thermal Ionization Mass spectrometry (TIMS) measurements was conducted to measure Am, Cm and Nd isotope ratios in irradiated samples. The method validation was performed on a natural Nd standard (JNdi-1 reference material). The literature JNdi-1 reference values are calculated using conventional internal normalization. However, in nuclear science, such normalization is not possible as no isotope ratio can be considered as a reference. The results from measurements were compared to reference values using the Exponential Mass Fractionation Law, which is a powerful tool to detect drifts. The results show that the dominant bias comes from isotope fractionation which can be minimized using the TE method. The acquired data suggest the following absolute composition for the JNdi-1 reference standard: 142Nd/144Nd = 1.13950(47), 143Nd/144Nd = 0.51163(30), 145Nd/144Nd = 0.34876(17), 146Nd/144Nd = 0.72322(65), 148Nd/144Nd = 0.24264(46) and 150Nd/144Nd = 0.23789(68) (k = 2). These values suggest the need to revisit the agreed upon reference values when the Nd absolute isotopic composition is required. The conditions of HPLC separation were also optimized to obtain purified fractions of Nd, Am and Cm in one experiment using a cation exchange column. Separations were achieved on a LUNA SCX column and using 2-hydroxy-methylbutyric acid (HMB) as an eluent introduced in the gradient mode. A difference below 0.03% was observed between data obtained with separation and without separation. Compared to previous work that required three separations using two different HPLC conditions, improvements were made in terms of both duration and the amount of radioactive effluents. The methodology was then successfully applied to irradiated discs coming from MARIOS and DIAMINO analytical irradiation.

Graphical abstract: Nd, Am and Cm isotopic measurements after simultaneous separation in transmutation irradiated samples

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
11 May 2021
Accepted
30 Jun 2021
First published
30 Jun 2021

J. Anal. At. Spectrom., 2021,36, 1758-1767

Nd, Am and Cm isotopic measurements after simultaneous separation in transmutation irradiated samples

A. Quemet, M. Angenieux and A. Ruas, J. Anal. At. Spectrom., 2021, 36, 1758 DOI: 10.1039/D1JA00165E

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements