An improved procedure for determining 90Sr in groundwater based on cation-exchange enrichment and solid-phase extraction

An improved procedure was developed using cation exchange enrichment and solid-phase extraction to determine 90Sr in groundwater. Sr desorption from cation exchange column and sorption on Sr-resin column were carried out at the same time by stacking two cartridges in tandem and rinse with concentrated nitric acid, based on the fact that both the two operations are performed under high acid conditions. Some steps such as evaporating the eluate and dissolving again for Sr transfer, necessary in some standard methods, were skipped. The improved procedure was successfully applied to 90Sr analysis in true monitor well water.