Abstract
A novel chronometry method is developed to date irradiated nuclear fuels. It is based on the measurement of two Cm isotopic ratios (244Cm/246Cm and 245Cm/246Cm) and does not require the addition of a yield tracer. The method relies on the decay of 244Cm while the 245Cm/246Cm ratio is considered constant after irradiation. Feasibility is demonstrated using different types of irradiated fuels with known irradiation history. A precision of 5 year is reached so far but clear potential for improvement has been identified. The novel chronometry method represents a promising alternative to existing dating techniques for nuclear materials.
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Acknowledgements
The CNL portion of this work was undertaken for Atomic Energy of Canada Limited through the Canadian Federal Science and Technology program under project 51200.50.18.06. The ETH Zurich Laboratory of Ion Beam Physics part of the project is partially funded by its consortium partners Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI), the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Sciences and Technology (EMPA), and the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (EAWAG). We want to thank the three anonymous reviewers for their very positive and constructive comments.
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Christl, M., Guérin, N., Totland, M. et al. A novel chronometry technique for dating irradiated uranium fuels using Cm isotopic ratios. J Radioanal Nucl Chem 322, 1611–1620 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-019-06767-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-019-06767-4