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230Th-234U and 231Pa-235U radiochronometry of hydrolyzed uranium hexafluoride gas

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Abstract

Radiochronometry analyses of three hydrolyzed UF6 gas samples were performed using the 230Th-234U and 231Pa-235U chronometers. All 230Th-234U model ages are younger than, and two of the three 231Pa-235U model ages overlap with, the known UF6 gas transfer dates. The 230Th-234U discordance is caused by 8–10% 230Th loss relative to the measurement reference date, likely during alkali hydrolysis. These results confirm that UF6 gas transfers effectively purify uranium from daughter progeny. Daughter progeny fractionation can occur if solutions are not kept within optimal conditions post-UF6 gas transfer and hydrolysis, and discordance between the 230Th-234U and 231Pa-235U chronometers may result from the laboratory procedures used to prepare samples.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank the Department of Homeland Security for postdoctoral support to LNH, MCL, Inc., for helpful discussion and information on the samples used in this study, and one anonomous reviewer for comments that improved this work. This work was performed under the auspices of the U.S. Department of Energy by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory under Contract DE-AC52-07NA27344 and supported by funding from the Department of Homeland Security. Releasable to external audiences, LLNL-JRNL-818999.

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  1. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Nuclear and Chemical Sciences Division, 7000 East Avenue, Livermore, CA, 94551, USA

    Lauren N. Harrison & Amy M. Gaffney

  2. Now At U.S. Geological Survey, 345 Middlefield Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA

    Lauren N. Harrison

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  1. Lauren N. Harrison
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  2. Amy M. Gaffney
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Correspondence to Lauren N. Harrison.

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Harrison, L.N., Gaffney, A.M. 230Th-234U and 231Pa-235U radiochronometry of hydrolyzed uranium hexafluoride gas. J Radioanal Nucl Chem 329, 1513–1521 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-021-07903-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-021-07903-9

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