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Title: Mid-Award Progress Report for Department of Energy Office of Science Graduate Student Research Program

Abstract

The purpose of the work proposed for this study is to investigate the behavior and transport mechanisms for cesium-137 in soils collected from contaminated sites with distinct source release scenarios. More specifically, this study aims to determine with which elements and minerals cesium-137 associates in these various environments to more reliably predict its migration in the subsurface. This will be achieved using a state-of-the-art analysis technique available at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) known as NanoSIMS. Nano-scale secondary ion mass spectrometry, or NanoSIMS, is a destructive surface analysis technique in which positive secondary ions are generated from the surface of a sample and then quantified based on their mass-to-charge ratio (m/z) using mass spectrometry. The data collected about the secondary ions can then be used to create isotope-specific spatial maps with a resolution of a few hundred nanometers and depth profiles that show the variation of the secondary ion intensity with sputtering time. This should be an ideal technique for locating cesium-137 in a sample, as cesium is an easily ionized element, meaning the yield of secondary cesium (Cs) ions produced should be high and making the identification of cesium-137 straight forward.

Authors:
 [1]
  1. Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE
OSTI Identifier:
1396231
Report Number(s):
LLNL-TR-739110
DOE Contract Number:  
AC52-07NA27344
Resource Type:
Technical Report
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES; 07 ISOTOPES AND RADIATION SOURCES

Citation Formats

Hoffman, M. K. Mid-Award Progress Report for Department of Energy Office of Science Graduate Student Research Program. United States: N. p., 2017. Web. doi:10.2172/1396231.
Hoffman, M. K. Mid-Award Progress Report for Department of Energy Office of Science Graduate Student Research Program. United States. https://doi.org/10.2172/1396231
Hoffman, M. K. 2017. "Mid-Award Progress Report for Department of Energy Office of Science Graduate Student Research Program". United States. https://doi.org/10.2172/1396231. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1396231.
@article{osti_1396231,
title = {Mid-Award Progress Report for Department of Energy Office of Science Graduate Student Research Program},
author = {Hoffman, M. K.},
abstractNote = {The purpose of the work proposed for this study is to investigate the behavior and transport mechanisms for cesium-137 in soils collected from contaminated sites with distinct source release scenarios. More specifically, this study aims to determine with which elements and minerals cesium-137 associates in these various environments to more reliably predict its migration in the subsurface. This will be achieved using a state-of-the-art analysis technique available at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) known as NanoSIMS. Nano-scale secondary ion mass spectrometry, or NanoSIMS, is a destructive surface analysis technique in which positive secondary ions are generated from the surface of a sample and then quantified based on their mass-to-charge ratio (m/z) using mass spectrometry. The data collected about the secondary ions can then be used to create isotope-specific spatial maps with a resolution of a few hundred nanometers and depth profiles that show the variation of the secondary ion intensity with sputtering time. This should be an ideal technique for locating cesium-137 in a sample, as cesium is an easily ionized element, meaning the yield of secondary cesium (Cs) ions produced should be high and making the identification of cesium-137 straight forward.},
doi = {10.2172/1396231},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/1396231}, journal = {},
number = ,
volume = ,
place = {United States},
year = {Thu Sep 14 00:00:00 EDT 2017},
month = {Thu Sep 14 00:00:00 EDT 2017}
}