Chemical Separation of Uranium and Precise Measurement of 234U/238U and 235U/238U Ratios in Soil Samples Using Multi Collector Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry

Nimelan Veerasamy; Asako Takamasa; Rajamanickam Murugan; Sharayu Kasar; Tatsuo Aono; Kazumasa Inoue; Masahiro Fukushi; Sarata Kumar Sahoo

doi:10.3390/molecules25092138

Molecules (May 2020)

Chemical Separation of Uranium and Precise Measurement of 234U/238U and 235U/238U Ratios in Soil Samples Using Multi Collector Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry

Nimelan Veerasamy,
Asako Takamasa,
Rajamanickam Murugan,
Sharayu Kasar,
Tatsuo Aono,
Kazumasa Inoue,
Masahiro Fukushi,
Sarata Kumar Sahoo

Affiliations

Nimelan Veerasamy: Environmental Radionuclide Research Group, National Institutes for Quantum and Radiological Science and Technology (QST), 4-9-1 Anagawa, Inage-Ku, Chiba 263-8555, Japan
Asako Takamasa: Environmental Radionuclide Research Group, National Institutes for Quantum and Radiological Science and Technology (QST), 4-9-1 Anagawa, Inage-Ku, Chiba 263-8555, Japan
Rajamanickam Murugan: Environmental Radionuclide Research Group, National Institutes for Quantum and Radiological Science and Technology (QST), 4-9-1 Anagawa, Inage-Ku, Chiba 263-8555, Japan
Sharayu Kasar: Environmental Radionuclide Research Group, National Institutes for Quantum and Radiological Science and Technology (QST), 4-9-1 Anagawa, Inage-Ku, Chiba 263-8555, Japan
Tatsuo Aono: Environmental Radionuclide Research Group, National Institutes for Quantum and Radiological Science and Technology (QST), 4-9-1 Anagawa, Inage-Ku, Chiba 263-8555, Japan
Kazumasa Inoue: Department of Radiological Sciences, Tokyo Metropolitan University, 7-2-10 Higashiogu, Arakawa-ku, Tokyo 116-8551, Japan
Masahiro Fukushi: Department of Radiological Sciences, Tokyo Metropolitan University, 7-2-10 Higashiogu, Arakawa-ku, Tokyo 116-8551, Japan
Sarata Kumar Sahoo: Environmental Radionuclide Research Group, National Institutes for Quantum and Radiological Science and Technology (QST), 4-9-1 Anagawa, Inage-Ku, Chiba 263-8555, Japan

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules25092138
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 25, no. 9
p. 2138

Abstract

Read online

A new chemical separation has been developed to isolate uranium (U) using two UTEVA columns to minimize iron and thorium interferences from high background area soil samples containing minerals like monazites and ilmenite. The separation method was successfully verified in some certified reference materials (CRMs), for example, JSd-2, JLk-1, JB-1 and JB-3. The same method was applied for purification of U in Fukushima soil samples affected by the Fukushima dai-ichi nuclear power station (FDNPS) accident. Precise and accurate measurement of 234U/238U and 235U/238U isotope ratios in chemically separated U were carried out using a multi-collector inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer (MC-ICP-MS). In this mass spectrometric method, an array of two Faraday cups (1011 Ω, 1012 Ω resistor) and a Daly detector were simultaneously employed. The precision of U isotope ratios in an in-house standard was evaluated by replicate measurement. Relative standard deviation (RSD) of 234U/238U and 235U/238U were found to be 0.094% (2σ) and 0.590% (2σ), respectively. This method has been validated using a standard reference material SRM 4350B, sediment sample. The replicate measurements of 234U/238U in SRM shows 0.7% (RSD). This developed method is suitable for separation of U and its isotope ratio measurement in environmental samples.

Published in Molecules

ISSN: 1420-3049 (Online)
Publisher: MDPI AG
Country of publisher: Switzerland
LCC subjects: Science: Chemistry: Organic chemistry
Website: http://www.mdpi.com/journal/molecules

About the journal

Abstract

Keywords