Gamma-ray isotopic ratio measurements for the plutonium inventory verification program

Technical Report · Wed Aug 25 00:00:00 EDT 1976

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/7148623· OSTI ID:7148623

Lemming, J. F.; Haas, F. X.; Jarvis, J. Y.

The Plutonium Inventory Verification Program at Mound Laboratory provides a nondestructive means of assaying bulk plutonium-bearing material. The assay is performed by combining the calorimetrically determined heat output of the sample and the relative abundances of the heat-producing isotopes. This report describes the method used for the nondestructive determination of plutonium-238, -240, -241 and americium-241 relative to plutonium-239 using gamma-ray spectroscopy for 93 percent plutonium-239 material. Comparison of chemical data on aliquots of samples to the nondestructive data shows accuracies of +-7 percent for /sup 238/Pu//sup 239/Pu, +-15 percent for /sup 240/Pu//sup 239/Pu, +- 3 percent for /sup 241/Pu//sup 239/Pu, and +-7 percent for /sup 241/Am//sup 239/Pu.

• Research Organization: Mound Plant (MOUND), Miamisburg, OH (United States)
• DOE Contract Number: E-33-1-GEN-53
• OSTI ID: 7148623
• Report Number(s): MLM-2312; TRN: 76-022152
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

37 INORGANIC
ORGANIC
PHYSICAL AND ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
AMERICIUM 241
GAMMA SPECTROSCOPY
PLUTONIUM
ISOTOPE RATIO
PLUTONIUM 238
PLUTONIUM 239
PLUTONIUM 240
PLUTONIUM 241
ACCURACY
INVENTORIES
MATERIAL BALANCE
NONDESTRUCTIVE ANALYSIS
ACTINIDE ISOTOPES
ACTINIDE NUCLEI
ACTINIDES
ALPHA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
AMERICIUM ISOTOPES
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
CHEMICAL ANALYSIS
ELEMENTS
EVEN-EVEN NUCLEI
EVEN-ODD NUCLEI
HEAVY NUCLEI
ISOTOPES
METALS
NUCLEI
ODD-EVEN NUCLEI
PLUTONIUM ISOTOPES
RADIOISOTOPES
SPECTROSCOPY
TRANSURANIUM ELEMENTS
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
400103* - Radiometric & Radiochemical Procedures- (-1987)