Abstract
A rapid method for measuring Sr-90 activity in crop ashes is presented. Liquid scintillation counting, combined with ion exchange columns 4‘, 4“(5“)-di-t-butylcyclohexane-18-crown-6, is used to determine the activity of Sr-90 in crops. The yields of chemical procedure are quantified using gravimetric analysis. The conventional method that uses ion-exchange resin with HDEHP could not completely remove all the bismuth when comparatively large lead and bismuth exist in the samples. This is overcome by the rapid method. The chemical yield of this method is about 60% and the MDA for Sr-90 is found to be 2:32 Bq/kg. The whole procedure together with using spectrum analysis to determine the activity only takes about one day, which is really a large improvement compared with the conventional method. A modified conventional method is also described here to verify the value of the rapid one. These two methods can meet di_erent needs of daily monitoring and emergency situation.
Highlights
Sr-90 is an artificial radionuclide produced by spontaneous fission of U and Pu [1], which is associated with nuclear accidents, nuclear facility operations, and nuclear weapon explosion [2, 3]
The spiked samples for conventional method were added with Sr-90 standard solution, Pb-210 standard solution and Sr-90 mixed with Pb-210 standard solution respectively and measured by liquid scintillation counter (LSC)
The same samples were analysed by modified conventional method and conventional method respectively, the results were shown in figure 4 and figure 5
Summary
Sr-90 is an artificial radionuclide produced by spontaneous fission of U and Pu [1], which is associated with nuclear accidents, nuclear facility operations, and nuclear weapon explosion [2, 3]. With historical nuclear explosion and accidents, a large number of radionuclides such as fission product strontium have been released to the atmosphere [4, 5]. Once the fallouts were absorbed by crops, Sr-90 can eventually get into the human body and accumulate in the skeleton as the result of its chemical similarity with the calcium, and its daughter radionuclide Y-90 emits high-energy β particles delivering a relatively high radiation dose to the bone and bone narrow tissues [6,7]. It‘s extremely critical to determine the activity of Sr-90 in crops. As China is rapidly developing the nuclear power industry, establishing associated daily monitoring and emergency determining systems of Sr-90 are really urgent
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
