Separation of gallium and actinides in plutonium nuclear materials by extraction chromatography

Analysis of stable gallium in nuclear materials has applications in nuclear fuel characterization and nuclear forensics. The use of positron-emitting gallium isotope 68Ga as a tracer for Ga recoveries for analyses in materials containing actinides was explored. A radiochemical method for the separation of Ga, Pu, U, Th, and Am using commercially-available extraction chromatography resins was developed and evaluated. The method effectively allows precise determination of Ga yield (97 ± 3 %) in the analysis of stable Ga (spike recovery 101 ± 1 %) and radioactive Pu (radiochemical yield, 82 ± 10 %; spike recovery, 96 ± 3 %), while also providing pure elemental fractions of other actinides relevant to materials encountered in the analysis Pu-containing materials.