Rapid and accurate determination of 89/90Sr in radioactive samples by Cerenkov counting

An improved and rapid method for determination of 90Sr via its daughter nuclide, 90Y, in aqueous samples from the low-level radioactive wastes by Cerenkov counting was established. This technique is applicable to beta particles maximum energies greater than 0.263 MeV in aqueous solution. A comparison of 90Sr determination by Cerenkov counting and standard wet chemical separation techniques indicates a high degree correlation and excellent agreement. For a 20 ml aqueous sample following the prescribed experimental conditions and a 60 min counting interval, the detection limit was 0.20 dpm/ml (0.10 pCi/ml), and the relative deviation is less then 5%. (author). 14 refs., 4 tabs