Lead isotope analysis description

I85,i87j g74+ j32]. There is thus renewed interest in the analysis of the so-called Bohr-Weisskopf effect [17,18], calling for an improved theoretical description of the nucleus [32], and a suitable way to relate the electronic and nuclear parts of the calculation. The situation is similar to the studies of parity non-conservation, where the unknown neutron distribution would lead to an uncertainty in the interpretation of experiments for chains of isotopes [33,34], larger than the expected experimental uncertainty. 

Consequently, this review is designed to briefly summarize many of the available techniques for accurate measurements of environmental and human lead contamination. This includes the importance of ultraclean techniques for lead analysis as well as brief descriptions of some current and emerging analytical techniques for measuring lead exposures in humans. The descriptions are preceded by abbreviated discussions of the chemical properties of lead, natural and anthropogenic variations in its stable isotopic composition, and historical records of lead contamination in the environment. The report concludes with a summary of some indirect methods of measuring lead exposure and toxicity in humans. Much of the material in this report is based on reviews written for several recent reports Measuring Lead Exposure in Infants, Children, and Other Sensitive Populations (NRC 1993), Lead in the Biosphere Recent Trends (Smith and Flegal 1995), and In Vivo Measurement and Speciation of Nephrotoxic Metals (Smith and McNeill 1995). 

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