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A brief introduction to analytical methods in nuclear forensics

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Abstract

Nuclear forensic (NF) techniques are critical in responding to both environmental releases of nuclear materials and illicit trafficking activities involving both nuclear and counterfeit materials. Despite rising need, however, significant barriers exist to the future success of such research. This subset of analytical chemistry contains unique concerns (e.g. chronometry and impurity signatures), a wide variety of preparatory/instrumental approaches, and is in need of innovative solutions to current problems both in and out of the lab. The present work introduces existing NF research, development challenges and notes potential areas for advancement by highlighting several key analytical approaches. Examples of concerns and techniques discussed in this review include: chronometry, reference materials, separations, counting spectrometry, mass spectrometry and more.

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Notes

  1. Occurs when the activity associated with an isotope becomes essentially constant after a given time because of the continued decay of the parent isotope. At this point, parent and daughter activity values are approximately equal.

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Acknowledgments

This work is LA-UR-12-20816.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Los Alamos National Laboratory, TA-3, Bldg 1400 Casa Grande Dr., Floyd Stanley Mail Stop G740, P.O. Box 1663, Los Alamos, NM, 87545, USA

    Floyd E. Stanley

  2. University of Cincinnati, 2600 Clifton Ave., Cincinnati, OH, 45221, USA

    A. M. Stalcup & H. B. Spitz

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  1. Floyd E. Stanley
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  2. A. M. Stalcup
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  3. H. B. Spitz
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Correspondence to Floyd E. Stanley.

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Stanley, F.E., Stalcup, A.M. & Spitz, H.B. A brief introduction to analytical methods in nuclear forensics. J Radioanal Nucl Chem 295, 1385–1393 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-012-1927-3

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