Nuclear analytical techniques

Neutron activation analysis (NAA) is a supreme technique for elemental analysis (Section 8.6.1). Other nuclear analytical techniques, such as PIXE (Section 8.4.2) and RBS, also find application in investigations of diffusion processes [445]. 

As a branch of chemistry, the activities of nuclear chemists frequentiy span several traditional areas of chemistry such as organic, analytical, inorganic, and physical chemistry. Nuclear chemistry has ties to all branches of chemistry. For example, nuclear chemists are frequently involved with the synthesis and preparation of radiolabeled molecules for use in research or medicine. Nuclear analytical techniques are an important part of the arsenal of the modem analytical chemist. The study of the actinide and transactinide elements has involved the joint efforts of nuclear and inorganic chemists in extending knowledge of the periodic table. Certainly, the physical concepts and reasoning at the heart of modem nuclear chemistry are familiar to physical chemists. In this book we will touch on many of these interdisciplinary topics and attempt to bring in familiar chemical concepts. 

This tiny quantity of material, if prepared as an aqueous solution of volume 1 L, would have a concentration of 10 14 mol/L. This simple calculation demonstrates a number of the important features of radiochemistry, that is, (a) the manipulation of samples involving infinitesimal quantities of material, (b) the power of nuclear analytical techniques (since 1 j.Ci is a significant, easily detectable quantity of radioactivity), and (c) in an extension of the calculation, since the decay of a single atom might occur by a-particle emission (with 100% detection efficiency), the ability to do chemistry one atom at a time. 

Chai, Z., Mao, X., Hu, Z., Zhang, Z., Chen, C., Feng, W., Hu, S., Ouyang, H. Overview of the methodology of nuclear analytical techniques for speciation studies of trace elements in the biological and environmental sciences. Anal. Bioanal. Chem. 372,407-411 (2002)... 

Lindh U and Johansson E (1987) Protective effects of selenium against mercury toxicity as studied in the rat liver and kidney by nuclear analytical techniques. 

Salbu B and Steinnes E (1992) Applications of nuclear analytical techniques in environmental research. Analyst 117 243 - 249. 

Other major literature on NAA in the form of chapters in books also cover in depth or include a discussion of the applications of activation analysis. In earlier years, good coverage appeared by Comar (1969) on clinical applications of activation analysis in Advances in Activation Analysis. Writing in Nuclear Analytical Techniques in Medicine, Cesareo (1988b) authored a contribution on Photon induced X-Ray emission. Of note is the fact that this is dually classified... 

Some examples of applications of nuclear activation analytical techniques to elemental determinations in a variety of materials are presented in Table 2.10. The specific contents of some of these and other publications may be briefly highlighted. Cunningham and Stroube Jr. (1987) provide a nice coverage of the application of an instrumental neutron activation analysis procedure to analysis of food, describing the capabilities of INAA for the multielement analysis of foods as carried out for many years, and also currently, by analysts of the US Food and Drug Administration stationed at the NIST Nuclear reactor facility. Salbu and Steinnes (1992) touch upon applications of nuclear analytical techniques in environmental research, and Norman and Iyengar... 

Cesareo R (1988b) Photon induced X-Ray emission. In Cesareo R, ed. Nuclear analytical techniques in medicine (Techniques and instrumentation in analytical chemistry, Vol 8), pp. 19-121. Elsevier, Amsterdam. 

Filby RH (1995) Isotopic and nuclear analytical techniques in biological systems a critical study. Part IX. Neutron activation analysis (technical report). Pure Appl Chem 67 1929-1941. 

Nuclear analytical techniques in atmospheric trace element... 

Keywords Nuclear analytical techniques Atmospheric trace elements Instrumental neutron activation analysis Proton induced X-ray emission Biomonitoring... 

Nuclear analytical techniques (NATs) and related isotopic tracer methods are well established as important tools in a wide variety of different kinds of environmental studies. They provide a wealth of information on sources, pathways and effects of many elements of environmental and health-related interest. Apart from being regarded as of particular strength in analytical quality assurance (IAEA, 1997), nuclear and related techniques cover studies of air particulates, solid waste products, sediments, food, water, human tissues, biomonitors and other kinds of environmental samples. 

De Goeij, J.J.M., Bode, P. 1997. Nuclear Analytical Techniques. Strong and weak points, obstacles and opportunities. In Proceedings of the Symposium on Harmonization of Health related Environmental Measurements using Nuclear and Isotopic Techniques, Hyderabad, India, 4-7 November 1996, pp. 3-17, IAEA Proc. Series, Vienna, STI/PUB/1006, ISBN 92-0-103697-3. 

Neutron activation analysis and other nuclear analytical techniques... 

Of the nuclear analytical techniques, NAA is the most important for iodine determination in foodstuffs. The main advantage of NAA is the ultimately low detection limit, which can be achieved using RNAA or PS-NAA, nondestructive performance of INAA and EINAA, freedom from interference and matrix effects of all modes of NAA for the determination of total iodine content. 

Many nuclear techniques have been introduced into the field of analytical chemistry. This chapter focu on radioanalytical methods with tlie exc j on of radiotracers, used to correct for separation yield in analytical procedures, and the radioreagent technique, based on quantitative and stoichiometric reaction of an elmnent of interest. Instrumental methods such as radioactivation analysis and proton-induced X-ray emission spectrometry are also powerful nuclear analytical techniques, but they also must fall outside the scope of this short treatment. Then, the modem trends in radio-analytical methods are described, which feature autonomous analytical methods with a novel combination of chemical procedures and radioisotope techniques. 

Nuclear analytical techniques have been demonstrated many times to be reliable and under complete statistical control. Nevertheless, a continuous effort by the practitioners is necessary to maintain the accuracy and precision of the analytical results and make these results acceptable in the modern quality environment of a testing laboratory. 

The ability to conduct direct comparisons with another analytical method may be limited because of existing capacities within or outside a laboratory, and frequently the special nature of the AA determination in terms of sensitivity or selectivity for the analyte of interest does not allow determinations with another technique. In these instances as well as a general substitute for a comparison on the investigated sample, the AA of a CRM will provide the desired information. Due to the advantages of being relatively matrix- and amount-independent, it is normally not difficult to demonstrate the accurate performance of nuclear analytical techniques. Of course, it must be noted that the user s result will always have a larger uncertainty than the uncertainty stated for the CRM. 

IAEA-TECDOC-459 Nuclear Analytical Techniques for On-Line Elemental Analysis in Industry 1988... 

R. Cesareo (ed ) Nuclear Analytical Techniques in Medicine. Elsevier, Amsterdam 1988. 

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