Electrodeposition of low-enriched uranium onto small platinum electrodes

Abstract

An updated method of preparing thin, uranium-coated, 0.25-mm diameter platinum electrodes using the cyclic potential sweep method is described. Sixty-four samples were prepared using a 0.2 M UO 2 (NO 3 ) 2 solution with 19.695% enriched uranium. Improvements were made to the sample preparation, electrodeposition , and analysis methods, producing smoother samples with more uniform surface features than prior work. Alpha-particle spectrometry was used to determine the mass of uranium deposited on each sample. The average mass of uranium deposited on the metallic electrode from 100 potential sweep cycles was 0.987 × 10 −7 g with a standard deviation of 0.860 × 10 −7 g. Removing the outliers reduces the average deposited mass to 0.741 × 10 −7 g with a standard deviation of 0.410 × 10 −7 g. A smooth, uniform deposition was observed over the entire electrode after deposition and no cracking or crystalline formations were observed. This improved method of electrodeposition remains an attractive method of depositing fissile material onto small metallic substrates for the fabrication of Micro-Pocket Fission Detectors.