Determination of total content and isotopic compositions of plutonium and uranium in environmental samples for safeguards purposes by ICP-QMS

The aim of this work was to determine the concentrations and isotopic compositions of plutonium and uranium in environmental samples for safeguards purposes. An analytical method was developed with a plutonium and uranium separation procedure based on extraction chromatography (using 2 mL TEVA and UTEVA columns) and detection with a quadrupole ICP-MS applying an ultra-sonic nebulizer coupled with a membrane desolvation system. Starting from blank swipes, the background equivalent concentration (BEC) was 8 fg for Pu-239 and 1 ng U-238. The method was successfully applied to certified reference materials as well as to round robin samples obtained in the framework of the inter-laboratory exercise program, promoted by the Brazilian-Argentine Agency for Accounting and Control of Nuclear Materials (ABACC), together with the US Department of Energy (USDOE). After the introduction of an additional ion-exchange separation step, the methodology was applied to the IAEA-384 sediment reference sample with precise and accurate total plutonium and uranium, Pu-240/Pu-239, Pu-241/Pu-239, U-234/U-238 and U-231/U-238 atomic ratio results. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.