Abstract
There is not much known on the stability of plasticized polymeric sensor membranes against ionizing radiation. While recent studies have indicated the applicability of potentiometric sensors with such membranes for quantification of actinides and lanthanides in spent nuclear fuel reprocessing solutions, the real industrial application of such sensors will require their stability in ionizing radiation fields. The present study explores this problem and evaluates the stability of potentiometric sensitivity towards lanthanides and actinides for a variety of plasticized polymeric membranes based on different neutral ligands. We demonstrate that most of the studied sensor compositions retain their sensitivity up to 50–100 kGy of the absorbed gamma radiation dose. The higher doses lead to the gradual loss of sensitivity due to the radiolysis of ligands and a polymer membrane matrix as confirmed by electrochemical impedance and nuclear magnetic resonance studies.
Highlights
Potentiometric sensors with polymer plasticized membranes are popular analytical instruments that have found massive application in various fields [1,2,3] due to very simple measuring procedure, low cost and low detection limits for a variety of ions
The study of gamma irradiation effects on the electrochemical properties of plasticized polymeric membranes of potentiometric sensors revealed that these materials keep their functionality up to 50–100 kGy of the absorbed dose, depending on the particular ligand
The first one is associated with the partial radiolysis of neutral ligands providing for potentiometric sensitivity
Summary
Potentiometric sensors with polymer plasticized membranes are popular analytical instruments that have found massive application in various fields [1,2,3] due to very simple measuring procedure, low cost and low detection limits for a variety of ions. These sensors are widely employed in multisensor arrays (so called “electronic tongues”) for qualitative and quantitative analysis of complex liquids [4]. During the most common industrial reprocessing scheme PUREX (Plutonium-URanium Extraction), the SNF is dissolved in highly concentrated nitric acid and the media is chemically aggressive
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