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Radiochemical technique optimization to measure uranium and thorium by α-spectrometry

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Abstract

A common advanced radiochemical technique is the use of the AG® 1-X8 anion exchanger, Cl2− form (from Bio Rad), to separate uranium and/or thorium from a sample by ion exchange. This method is used to separate elements by chemical elution from an ion exchange column via a precipitate of substances (co-precipitation), with Nd3+ as a thin layer of smooth fluoride particles on a membrane filter, then using α-spectrometry to measure uranium and thorium. The obtained data showed that the column could be reused, at least twelve times, safely in separating uranium and thorium from environmental samples, before observing any change in the performance of the exchanger.

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Availability of data and materials

All the experiments were carried out at radiochemical analysis laboratory at the center of Radiation Protection & Training, King Abdul-Aziz University. The data were measured by using α-spectrometry and all data saved in the system, which are available at Nuclear Engineering Department. All the data are available from the corresponding author (Dr. O. Fallatah) of this manuscript.

Abbreviations

Th:

Thorium

U:

Uranium

HNO3 :

Nitric acid

HCl:

Hydrochloric acid

pCi:

Picocurie

TiCl3:

Titanium (III) chloride

HF:

Hydrofluoric acid

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Acknowledgements

This work was funded by the Deanship of Scientific Research (DSR), King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, under grant No. ( D-072-135-1442). The authors, therefore, acknowledge with thanks DSR technical and financial support. The authors also thank the Editor and the anonymous reviewers of journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry.

Funding

This work was financially supported by the Deanship of Scientific Research ( DSR), KAU, Jeddah, under grant No. (D-072-135-1442).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Engineering, Radiation Protection and Training Centre, King Abdulaziz University, P.O. Box 80204, Jeddah, 21589, Saudi Arabia

    O. Fallatah & M. M. T. Qutub

Authors
  1. O. Fallatah
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  2. M. M. T. Qutub
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Contributions

O. Fallatah will oversee the overall objectives of the article at radiochemical analysis laboratory in Radiation Protection & Training Centre, King Abdul-Aziz University. He’s responsible for the supervision of organizing and overall management of the components of the research activities, ordering required materials, calibration of the Alpha spectrometer, and also be responsible for publication and presentation of results. M. M. T. Qutub carried out analysis, chemical separation, and measurement of results by using α-spectrometry.

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Correspondence to O. Fallatah.

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Fallatah, O., Qutub, M.M.T. Radiochemical technique optimization to measure uranium and thorium by α-spectrometry. J Radioanal Nucl Chem 328, 1077–1083 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-021-07706-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-021-07706-y

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