Year
1998
Abstract
In K-edge densitometry (KED), a continuous-energy x-ray beam is transmitted through a liquid sample. The actinide content of the sample can be measured through analysis of the transmitted portion of the x-ray beam. Traditional methods for KED analysis allow the simultaneous calculation of, at most, two actinide concentrations. A generalized multi-edge KED analytical method is presented, allowing up to six actinide concentrations to be calculated simultaneously. Applications of this method for hybrid KED/x-ray fluorescence (HKED) systems are discussed. Current HKED systems require the operator to know the approximate actinide content of each sample, and manually select the proper analysis mode. The new multi-edge KED technique allows rapid identification of the major actinide components in a sample, independent of actinide content. The proper HKED analysis mode can be selected automatically, without requiring sample content information from the user. Automatic HKED analysis would be especially useful in an analytical laboratory setting, where samples with truly unknown characteristics are encountered. Because this technique requires no hardware modifications, several facilities that use HKED may eventually benefit from this approach.