Engineering topics

Warzecha, Evan J.

Publications and source records attributed to Warzecha, Evan J..

3 records

DOE OSTI2024

Separation of gold from irradiated actinide material utilizing a 2- thenoyltrifluoroacetone extraction resin

Post-detonation nuclear forensics capabilities depend on the ability to rapidly isolate radionuclides to improve measurement quality. In this work an extraction chromatography resin was developed utilizing the extractants thenoyltrifluoroacetone and 1-octanol supported on Eichrom prefilter resin. Here the resin was tested in nitric and hydrochloric acid matrices. In nitric acid matrices the resin is able to extract zirconium, while in hydrochloric acid matrices it is possible to extract iron and gallium. In all acid conditions tested gold is retained but can be removed from the column with a 10% thiourea rinse.

38 RADIATION CHEMISTRY, RADIOCHEMISTRY, AND NUCLEA↗

DOE OSTI2024

A new method for quantifying 64 Cu in nuclear debris samples

Quantifying 64 Cu in post-detonation nuclear debris samples can provide important diagnostic information regarding the structural materials used within a nuclear device. However, this task is challenging due to the weak gamma emissions associated with the decay of 64 Cu, its short half-life (12.701 h), and the presence of interfering fission product radioisotopes. Large quantities of debris sample are generally needed to accurately quantify 64 Cu, which can be problematic in sample-limited scenarios where other radiometric analyses are required. Herein, we present a new method for the separation of 64 Cu from solutions of mixed fission products and demonstrate the quantification of its activity through use of gas-flow proportional beta counting. Here, the new method was validated through a series of rigorous tests and was shown to improve the detection limit of 64 Cu by over two orders of magnitude, from 2.5 × 10 6 to 1.3 × 10 4 atoms/sample for 100 min measurements.

38 RADIATION CHEMISTRY, RADIOCHEMISTRY, AND NUCLEA↗

DOE OSTI2024

Evaluation of SR/ TEVA/ TRU triple stack for separation of activation products

A rapid method to separate Ta, Po, Au, Pt, and W from a sample containing mixed fission and activation products was developed using three commercially available extraction chromatography resins stacked in series. When the separation was tested using all the target activation products, even those with short half-lives were measurable. Finally, combining multiple extraction chromatography resin cartridges in tandem allows for multiple short-lived activation products to be separated from one sample addition without the complication of multiple steps.

38 RADIATION CHEMISTRY, RADIOCHEMISTRY, AND NUCLEA↗