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Determination of 241Am in urine using sector field inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (SF-ICP-MS)

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Abstract

Quantification of 241Am in urine at low levels is important for assessment of individuals’ or populations’ accidental, environmental, or terrorism-related internal contamination, but no convenient, precise method has been established to rapidly determine these low levels. Here we report a new analytical method to measure 241Am as developed and validated at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) by means of the selective retention of Am from urine directly on DGA resin, followed by SF-ICP-MS detection. The method provides rapid results with a limit of detection (LOD) of 0.22 pg/L (0.028 Bq/L), which is lower than 1/3 of the C/P CDG for 241Am at 5 days post-exposure. The results obtained by this method closely agree with CDC values as measured by liquid scintillation counting, and with National Institute of Standards Technology (NIST) Certified Reference Materials (CRM) target values.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank Baki B. Sadi at the Radiation Protection Bureau, Health Canada and Ted Zateslo at the Thermo Fisher Scientific technical support group (U.S.) for their help and technical assistance. The opinions expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not reflect the view of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Department of Health and Human Services, or the United States government.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no competing financial interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Inorganic and Radiation Analytical Toxicology Branch, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 4770 Buford HWY, Mail Stop F50, Atlanta, GA, 30341, USA

    Ge Xiao, David Saunders, Robert L. Jones & Kathleen L. Caldwell

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  1. Ge Xiao
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  2. David Saunders
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  3. Robert L. Jones
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  4. Kathleen L. Caldwell
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Correspondence to Ge Xiao.

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Xiao, G., Saunders, D., Jones, R.L. et al. Determination of 241Am in urine using sector field inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (SF-ICP-MS). J Radioanal Nucl Chem 301, 285–291 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-014-3103-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-014-3103-4

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