Development of a novel rapid screening technique for radionuclides using test-stick technology

Abstract

The nuclear decommissioning authority (NDA) has been tasked with the decommissioning and clean-up of the UK’s nuclear legacy. The NDA has identified methods to streamline the characterisation process by investing into the development of rapid screening techniques. Characterisation of non-gamma emitting radionuclides is currently relied upon off-site specialist radiochemical laboratories. Dependence on these off-site specialist laboratories for screening samples for non-gamma emitting radionuclides can increase the costs and timescales associated with reaching the desired end-states.
Test-stick technology looks to address this issue and provide a suitable candidate for on-site rapid screening of difficult-to-measure (DTM) radionuclides, such as 90Sr. Strontium-90 has been selected as an exemplar for this technique to demonstrate the application of test-stick technology to screen for a DTM radionuclide and major contaminant in nuclear facilities.
A test-stick manufacture technique is presented along with the performance of two industrial extractive resins; TK100 and Clevasol. Both extractive resins were selected due to their operability in neutral conditions making them suited to sample groundwater and requiring no acids for experimental work. Operability conditions for both extractive resin test-sticks were determined including sampling time (40 to 60 minutes), sample volume (~4 mL) and the role of chemical interferences (Na, K, Ca and Mg). These studies provided insight into the test-stick performance for both extractive resins and how the performance between these extractive resin test-sticks compared. Optimisations for test-stick technology including test-stick manufacture and sampling time were identified and highlighted for future test-stick developments. Numerical simulations provided further insight into test-stick performance including over different extractive resin mass loadings on the test-stick as well as variable sample volumes. The performance of test-stick technology over a wide range of stable Sr concentrations was simulated and compared against real-world values for Sellafield.

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ORCID for Phillip Warwick: orcid.org/0000-0001-8774-5125

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