Nuclear Engineering and Technology

Korean Nuclear Society (한국원자력학회)
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A study of neutron activation analysis compared to inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry for geological samples in Iran

  • Mohammadzadeh, Mohammad (Department of Radiation in Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University G.C.) ;
  • Ajami, Mona (Department of Nuclear Engineering, Shahid Beheshti University G.C.) ;
  • shadeghipanah, Arash (Department of Radiation Application, Shahid Beheshti University G.C.) ;
  • Rezvanifard, Mehdi (Reactor Research and Nuclear Safety School, Nuclear Science and Technology Research Institute (NSTRI))
  • Received : 2017.11.23
  • Accepted : 2018.07.26
  • Published : 2018.12.25
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Abstract

Inductively Coupled Plasma Atomic Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-AES) is widely used for the determination of trace elements in geological samples in Iran. In this paper, we have calculated the detection limits of neutron activation analysis (NAA) for some of the common elements in such samples utilizing the ORIGEN and MCNP codes and verified the simulations using the experimental results of three soil standard reference materials, namely, G02.SRM, G18.SRM, and G28.SRM. The results show that while the detection limit of ICP-AES method is usually in the mg/kg range, it is represented to the ${\mu}g/kg$ range for most of the elements of interest using the NAA method, and the simulations can be verified in a tolerance range of 20%.

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References

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