Influence of acid leaching to determine natural radionuclides in sand samples by alpha spectrometry

Abstract

Dissolution of sand samples in order to determine natural radionuclides as Uranium and Polonium is an essential step in alpha spectrometry analyses. The aim of this work has been to analyse which digestion method for alpha spectrometry measurement of uranium and polonium radioisotopes in sand samples from Las Canteras beach (Gran Canaria) is the most appropriate. This study was carried out by varying the digestion time of sand and reference samples in the oven and also by performing a microwave digestion. A change in the triplet of acids used on the microwave digestion was also evaluated. The polonium and uranium radioisotopes were extracted by a radiochemical separation method and measured by alpha-spectrometry. To provide an optimal evaluation of the most efficiency digestion method applied to the reference and the sand samples, the Analytical Laboratories for the Measurement of Environmental Radioactivity (ALMERA) proficiency test was used.