Abstract
– Innovative methods were developed for direct 90Sr and 137Cs determination in soils by radiochemical separation and β-counting. Studies focused on: (1) the suitability of PEG to remove silica by coating, (2) the decontamination effect of Cs from 40K, (3) iron elimination with Microthene-TOA column instead of oxalate complex, and (4) the effective separation of Y and Sr from Pb by a Microthene-TOA column which made the direct 90Sr determination possible in less time with just one resin-column. The methods were validated by analysing the IAEA reference materials, showing good agreement with the recommended values. The methods were used to determine 90Sr and 137Cs in 21 soil samples. The obtained 90Sr concentrations in the soils were in the range of 0.46–2.95 Bq kg−1, while 137Cs 1.24–35.5 Bq kg−1. The yields of yttrium and caesium were 73.4 ± 8.0% and 79.0 ± 9.1%, respectively.
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