Separation and determination of boron, chlorine, fluorine and molybdenum in uranium silicide using pyrohydrolysis and ion chromatography

An analytical method, based on separation by pyrohydrolysis and quantification by ion chromatography for the simultaneous trace level determination of B, Cl, F and Mo in U₃Si₂ was proposed. The optimum pyrohydrolysis conditions were identified and a two-step isocratic ion chromatography procedure was proposed for their sensitive determination. The developed method was validated by comparing the results obtained for B and Mo by spectrophotometry and ICP-AES, respectively, whereas an in-house working standard of UO₂ was used for F and Cl. The method limit of detection was 0.5-0.6 µg g^-1 for B, F and Cl and 2.5 µg g^-1 for Mo. (author)