Hyphenation of capillary electrophoresis with MC-ICP-MS - A novel tool for uranium age dating

[摘要] Capillary electrophoresis (CE) was hyphenated to multi-collector inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (MC-ICP-MS) to determine the model age of a highly enriched uranium (HEU) sample using the U-234/Th-230 radiochronometer. The use of hydroxymethylbutyric acid (HMBA) as the CE electrolyte was investigated, and a complexation stacking method was developed to increase the thorium signal obtained. The age of the material was determined by measuring the Th-230 content of the HEU sample using isotope dilution in conjunction with the CE-MC-ICP-MS protocol. The CE-MC-ICP-MS protocol and a standard offline protocol using gravitational chromatography both gave results in accordance within uncertainties with the production date of the HEU sample (March 1965). Liquid waste production was only of a few microliters with the use of CE. The hyphenation of CE with MC-ICP-MS render the measurement of the age of the HEU material in less than one day possible. Obtaining results in a timely fashion is of particular importance for nuclear forensics studies.

[发布日期] 2020-11-01

[关键词] Capillary electrophoresis;Multi-collector ICP-MS;Stacking;Nuclear forensics;Isotope dilution;Uranium thorium