
doi: 10.2172/534522 , 10.2172/100140
A new technique has been developed to determine the age of highly enriched uranium (HEU) in solids. Uranium age is defined as the time since the uranium-containing material was last subjected to a process capable of separating uranium from its radioactive-decay daughters. [Most chemical processing, uranium enrichment, volatilization processes, and phase transformations (especially relevant for uranium hexafluoride) can result in separation of the uranium parent material from the decay-product daughters.] Determination of the uranium age, as defined here, may be relevant in verifying arms-control agreements involving uranium-containing nuclear weapons. The HEU age is determined from the ratios of relevant uranium daughter isotopes and their parents, viz {sup 230}Th/{sup 234}U and {sup 231}Pa/{sup 235}U. Uranium isotopes are quantitatively measured by their characteristic gamma rays and their daughters by alpha spectroscopy. In some of the samples, where HEU is enriched more than 99%, the only mode of HEU age determination is by the measurement of {sup 231}Pa since there is negligible quantity of {sup 230}Th due to very low atom concentrations of {sup 234}U in the samples. In this report the methodology and the data for determining the age of two HEU samples are presented.
And National Defense, Protactinium 231, Age Estimation, 40 Chemistry, Processing, Safeguards, Uranium 234, Uranium 235, 05 Nuclear Fuels, Uranium Hexafluoride, Uranium Isotopes, Isotope Ratio, Thorium 230, Nuclear Weapons Dismantlement, Highly Enriched Uranium, Isotope Dilution, 45 Military Technology, Non-Proliferation Policy, Quantitative Chemical Analysis, Nuclear Materials Management, Ion Exchange, Separation Processes, Numerical Data, Gamma Spectra, Alpha Spectroscopy, Weaponry, Diagrams
And National Defense, Protactinium 231, Age Estimation, 40 Chemistry, Processing, Safeguards, Uranium 234, Uranium 235, 05 Nuclear Fuels, Uranium Hexafluoride, Uranium Isotopes, Isotope Ratio, Thorium 230, Nuclear Weapons Dismantlement, Highly Enriched Uranium, Isotope Dilution, 45 Military Technology, Non-Proliferation Policy, Quantitative Chemical Analysis, Nuclear Materials Management, Ion Exchange, Separation Processes, Numerical Data, Gamma Spectra, Alpha Spectroscopy, Weaponry, Diagrams
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