Non-volatile organic analysis of uranium ore concentrates

In support of nuclear safeguards and non-proliferation efforts, Oak Ridge National Laboratory is responsible for characterizing uranium ore concentrate (UOC) samples obtained from two ore mining and milling sites. A sorptive extraction method has been developed for analysis of non-volatile organic compounds that might be used to identify characteristics of the purification process by which uranium was separated from these ores. This method utilizes Gerstel Twister^® stir bars coated with polydimethylsiloxane to extract organic components from aqueous media. A slurry of UOC is extracted with the Twister^® stir bar in 20 % methanol/80 % water containing deuterated internal hydrocarbon standards. Following extraction of non-volatile organics, the Twister^® stir bar is analyzed directly in the inlet of a gas chromatograph fitted with a quadrupole mass spectrometric detector. Results have been consistent and have shown excellent recoveries of internal standards, with the average recovery being 97.5 %. Both qualitative and quantitative differences have been identified between the two sources of UOC utilizing this method. One source contained an increased concentration of amines which commonly are used in the recovery and purification of ores. Amines that were identified in this UOC source include dioctylamine, triisoctylamine, and Alamine^® 336, a common industrial complexant. Also, when comparing both sources, the same UOC source contained various decanol and C20 compounds. Based on the results from this study, non-volatile organic analysis of UOC using sorptive extraction with Twister^® stir bars and GC–MS is a tool that can be used to facilitate sourcing of unknown UOC.     

Anion analysis in uranium ore concentrates by ion chromatography

In the present exploratory study, the applicability of anionic impurities for attributing nuclear material to a certain chemical process or origin has been investigated. Anions (e.g., nitrate, sulphate, fluoride, chloride) originate from acids or salt solutions that are used for processing of solutions containing uranium or plutonium. The study focuses on uranium ore concentrates (“yellow cakes”) originating from different mines. Uranium is mined from different types of ore body and depending on the type of rock, different chemical processes for leaching, dissolving and precipitating the uranium need to be applied. Consequently, the anionic patterns observed in the products of these processes (the “ore concentrates”) are different. The concentrations of different anionic species were measured by ion chromatography using conductivity detection. The results show clear differences of anion concentrations and patterns between samples from different uranium mines. Besides this, differences between sampling campaigns in a same mine were also observed indicating that the uranium ore is not homogeneous in a mine. These within-mine variations, however, were smaller than the between-mine variations.     

Determination of certain trace impurities in uranium concentrates by activation analysis

A method is presented for the simultaneous determination of chromium, iron, cobalt and zinc in samples of uranium concentrates, oxides and metallic uranium by neutron-activation analysis. The method involves adequate decontamination of gross fission product activities by adsorption on silica gel, removal of uranium by solvent extraction, separation of most carrier-free rare-earth activities by coprecipitation with aluminium chloride, and, finally, fractional separation of the elements concerned by ion-exchange chromatography. The method can assay ppm of such elements in limited quantities of samples by scintillation gamma-ray spectrometric analysis with a reproducibility of 10-15%.     

Chlorophyll-a determination: results of an interlaboratory comparison

A chlorophyll-a interlaboratory comparison was carried out to compare three different analytical chlorophyll-a determination methods: a German standard DIN 38412-16, a method of the HELCOM-Combine-Manual and the different “in-house” methods of participating laboratories. Eleven laboratories took part. They had to determinate the chlorophyll-a and phaeopigment content in two seawater samples taken from the Baltic Sea. Furthermore, for the assessment three different statistical evaluation methods were applied: the German standard DIN 38402-42, the Q-method combined with an estimator according to Huber and the Cofino-method. All analytical methods were appropriate to determine the chlorophyll-a content. The relative standard deviations of reproducibility for chlorophyll-a varied between 12 and 31%. None of the analytical methods was appropriate to determine the phaeopigment content quantitatively. The relative standard deviations of reproducibility for phaeopigments ranged between 87 and 158%. The applied statistical evaluation methods resulted in different assessments. The Q-method combined with an estimator according to Huber proved to be the best qualified method.Presented at the Eurachem PT Workshop September 2005, Portorož, Slovenia     

Trace metal determination in animal tissues: an interlaboratory comparison

Two dried and powdered preparations of narwhal liver and muscle were distributed to 13 laboratories for analysis for Cu, Cd, Zn, Pb, Hg, and Se. Laboratories chose their own methods, using atomic-absorption spectrometry, atomic-emission spectrometry with a direct-current or inductively-coupled plasma, anodic stripping voltammetry (ASV), neutron activation analysis (NAA), and gas chromatography. The coefficients of variation ranged from 2 to 5% for Cu, Cd, Zn, Hg in liver, but were somewhat higher for Zn by ASV and NAA. In muscle, the precision for Zn was similar to that for liver, but was poorer for Cu (8.8%) and Cd (19%). For Pb, the overall precision was 15% and 21% for liver and muscle respectively. Selenium in both tissues was determined with an overall precision of 6-7%, except by NAA, for which it was considerably worse, at 21-26%.     

Pure graphite as a reference material for the determination of trace elements — an interlaboratory collaborative study

Seven synthetic graphite powders of different grade of purity were analyzed by means of INAA, WDXRF, EDXRF, DC-OES directly and using ICP-MS, ICP-OES, ETAAS and FAAS in combination with various sample preparation techniques. On the basis of a statistical evaluation of the results obtained, for the trace elements Al, Ca, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn and Ni, reference values were established and, for the elements As, Co, Mg, Mo, Pb, Sb, Si, Sr, Ti, V, Zn and Zr, informative values are given. The analyzed reference materials are commercially available.     

Pure graphite as a reference material for the determination of trace elements — an interlaboratory collaborative study

 Seven synthetic graphite powders of different grade of purity were analyzed by means of INAA, WDXRF, EDXRF, DC-OES directly and using ICP-MS, ICP-OES, ETAAS and FAAS in combination with various sample preparation techniques. On the basis of a statistical evaluation of the results obtained, for the trace elements Al, Ca, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn and Ni, reference values were established and, for the elements As, Co, Mg, Mo, Pb, Sb, Si, Sr, Ti, V, Zn and Zr, informative values are given. The analyzed reference materials are commercially available. Received: 12 February 1996/Revised:27 March 1996/Accepted:2 April 1996     

Determination of trace elements in uranium oxide by Total Reflection X-ray Fluorescence spectrometry

A study on the applicability of Total Reflection X-ray Fluorescence for the determination of multielements in trace amounts in U₃O₈ matrix has been made. The calibration of the Total Reflection X-ray Fluorescence spectrometer and the validation of the method were done using multielement standards. The trace elements present in U₃O₈ standards and samples were determined after separating the U matrix by solvent extraction using tri-n-butyl phosphate and trioctyl phosphine oxide as extractants. From the aqueous phase the elements K, Ca, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Br, Rb, Sr, Y, Zr, Pb and Ba, etc., were determined by Total Reflection X-ray Fluorescence using Ga as an internal standard. An intercomparison of the Total Reflection X-ray Fluorescence determined concentrations of the trace elements specific to nuclear fuel, e.g. Ca, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn in U₃O₈ standards/samples with certified concentrations for these elements in U₃O₈ standards and Inductively Coupled Plasma Atomic Emission Spectroscopy determined concentrations in real U₃O₈ samples was also made. The method shows a precision and accuracy better than 5% (1σ) for most elements in concentration range of ng/mL with a sample size of 10 μL.     

Trace analysis of uranium ore concentrates using laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry for nuclear forensics

Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry - We present a laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) method for trace-element analysis of uranium ore concentrates...     

Determination of tungsten in complex sulphide ore concentrates

Determination of tungsten as the thiocyanato complex after separation as the alpha-benzoin oximate complex has been satisfactorily applied to a standard steel and a complex sulphide ore concentrate containing tungsten associated with considerable amounts of Mo, Cu, Bi, As, Pb, Zn, Fe and Sn.     

Visualisation of interlaboratory comparison results in PomPlots

In this work a novel graphical method is applied to the presentation of intercomparison results. This is demonstrated with the results of a recent intercomparison in measuring the ¹³⁷Cs, ⁴⁰K, and ⁹⁰Sr activity concentration in milk powder. The “PomPlot”, an intuitive graphical method, is used for producing a summary overview of the participants’ results of a common measurand. The “PomPlot” displays (relative) deviations of individual results from the reference value on the horizontal axis and (relative) uncertainties on the vertical axis.     

Concentration and particle-size distribution of uranium and some trace elements in airborne dust collected in Tsukuba

Uranium and some other trace elements were determined in the size-separated airborne dust collected in Tsukuba with an Andersen-type high-volume cascade impactor. The fission track method and the instrumental neutron activation method were applied to the determination of uranium and other elements, respectively. Selenium, antimony, arsenic and zinc were found to be rich in particulates of smaller size, while scandium, iron and cobalt showed a reverse trend, depending on their main origins, i.e. whether industrial or terrestrial. Uranium was distributed in both the larger and smaller particles to the same extent, suggesting that it is derived from both the terrestrial and artificial sources.     

Determination of rare earth elements at trace levels in uranium process stream samples by ion-interaction chromatography

To accurately determine ²⁴¹Am by mass spectrometry, interfering elements (IEs) including Bi, Hf, Hg, Pb, Pt, Pu and Tl need to be decontaminated. In this study, the extraction behaviors of IEs in HNO₃ and HCl mediums were systematically studied for the employed extraction resins (TRU, DGA-N and DGA-B). Based on the results, chemical separation procedures were proposed. After cooperation with proper co-precipitation methods, the proposed procedures can be used to determine ²⁴¹Am in environmental samples. The results of evaluation showed that IEs in soil samples were completely removed and ²⁴¹Am was accurately determined for all proposed procedures.     

Spectrochemical determination of trace uranium by an argon-stabilized U-shaped DC arc

An argon-stabilized U-shaped DC arc with the system for aerosol introduction was used for uranium determination. High uranium toxicity suggests the necessity of developing as sensitive methods as possible for U detection in various natural samples and complex matrices. By optimizing the operation conditions of U-shaped arc plasma and by applying an appropriate computer program that performs temporal integration of recorded signals, the measurement precision as well as the concentration sensitivity were improved, and the detection limit was lowered. Uranium detection limit, obtained by the application of U-shaped arc plasma during different integration times, decreases by increasing integration time. By increasing this time from 1 to 30 s, the detection limit was 37 times lower and the lowest detection limit is 0.07 μg/mL. The detection limit achieved by this method is comparable with the detection limits obtained by such methods as inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES), direct coupled plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy (DCP-AES), and microwave induced plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy (MIP-AES). The text was submitted by the authors in English.     

Evaluation of results of an interlaboratory comparison test on determination of acrylamide in crispbread samples

The European Commission's Directorate General Joint Research Centre has organized several proficiency tests on the determination of acrylamide (AA) in food. This paper presents the results and outcome of a proficiency test that focused on the determination of AA in crispbread samples. One of the goals was the identification of the influence of different parameters such as analyte extraction or instrument calibration on the analytical results. A set of samples, containing 3 different crispbread samples as well as extracts of one crispbread sample and AA standard solutions, was shipped to each participant. A total of 42 European laboratories reported analytical results that were evaluated by applying internationally accepted protocols and procedures. The study found that, for each sample, the results of 4-8 laboratories were outside the range formed by the target value plus or minus the 2-fold of the target standard deviation; thus, they did not perform satisfactorily. In transferring this knowledge to the data of monitoring databases of AA in food, care must be taken that data are quality controlled, as it is likely that some of them may be biased.     

Application of ion-exchange separations to determination of trace elements in natural waters-IX: simultaneous isolation and determination of uranium and thorium

A method is described for the determination of uranium and thorium in samples of natural waters. After acidification with citric acid the water sample is filtered and sodium citrate and ascorbic acid are added. The resulting solution of pH 3 is passed through a 4-g column of Dowex 1 x 8 (citrate form) on which both uranium and thorium are adsorbed as anionic citrate complexes. Thorium is eluted with 8M hydrochloric acid and separated from co-eluted substances by anion-exchange in 8M nitric acid medium on a separate 2-g column of the same resin in the nitrate form. After complete removal of iron by washing with a mixture consisting of IBMK, acetone and 1M hydrochloric acid (1:8:1 v v ) and treatment of the resin with 6M hydrochloric acid, the uranium is eluted from the 4-g column with 1M hydrochloric acid. In the eluate thorium is determined spectrophotometrically (arsenazo III method) while fluorimetry is employed for the assay of uranium. The procedure was used for the determination of uranium and thorium in numerous water samples collected in Austria, including samples of mineral-waters. The results indicate that a simple relationship exists between the uranium and thorium contents of waters which makes it possible to calculate the approximate thorium content of a sample on the basis of its uranium concentration and vice versa.     

Uranium bioleaching from low-grade carbonaceous-siliceous-argillaceous type uranium ore using an indigenous Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans

Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry - We evaluated the effectiveness of bioleaching uranium from a low-grade carbonaceous-siliceous-argillaceous type uranium ore using an indigenous...