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A lexicon for consistent description of material images for nuclear forensics

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Abstract

We have developed a lexicon to consistently and objectively describe morphological features observed in scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images. Here we provide the lexicon flowsheet, define the terminology, and detail step-by-step characterization of SEM images collected from a set of actinide oxides. We conclude that this lexicon can be used to characterize texture and surface features, particle structure and size, and grain boundaries in an image of a material. The lexicon should be applicable to characterization of images collected from other techniques for measuring morphology, as well. LA-UR-15-26746

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Notes

  1. Mineral habit is a term adapted from mineralogy, and is defined as the appearance of the sub-particles making up a larger assemblage.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank W. Tyler Mullen and Sandra A. Zerkle for useful discussions. This work was supported by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Transformational and Applied Research Directorate and National Technical Nuclear Forensic Center, under competitively awarded contracts IAA HSHQDC-13-X-00269 and DHDQDC-08-X-00805. A.L.T. gratefully acknowledges the U.S. Department of Homeland Security under Grant Award Number, 2012-DN-130-NF0001-02, the Seaborg Institute, and the University of Missouri for providing funding to perform this work. J.R.W.’s contribution to this material is based upon work supported by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security under Grant Award Number 2012-DN-130-NF0001-02. The views and conclusions contained in this document are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as necessarily representing the official policies, either expressed or implied, of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security or the Government. Los Alamos National Laboratory is operated by Los Alamos National Security, L.L.C. for the National Nuclear Security Administration of the U.S. Department of Energy (Contract DE-AC52-06NA25396).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Los Alamos National Laboratory, P.O. Box 1663, Los Alamos, NM, 87545, USA

    Alison L. Tamasi, Leigh J. Cash, Reid B. Porter, David L. Pugmire, Amy R. Ross, Christy E. Ruggiero, Lav Tandon, Gregory L. Wagner, Angelique D. Wall & Marianne P. Wilkerson

  2. Department of Chemistry, University of Missouri-Columbia, Columbia, MO, 65211, USA

    Alison L. Tamasi & Justin R. Walensky

  3. Department of Chemistry, South Carolina State University, Orangeburg, SC, 29117, USA

    Christopher Eley

Authors
  1. Alison L. Tamasi
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  2. Leigh J. Cash
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  3. Christopher Eley
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  4. Reid B. Porter
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  5. David L. Pugmire
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  8. Lav Tandon
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  9. Gregory L. Wagner
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  12. Marianne P. Wilkerson
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Correspondence to Marianne P. Wilkerson.

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Tamasi, A.L., Cash, L.J., Eley, C. et al. A lexicon for consistent description of material images for nuclear forensics. J Radioanal Nucl Chem 307, 1611–1619 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-015-4455-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-015-4455-0

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