Determination of metal impurities in MOX powder by direct current arc atomic emission spectroscopy. Application of standard addition method for direct analysis of powder sample

Metal impurities in MOX powder obtained from uranium and plutonium recovered from reprocessing process of spent nuclear fuel have to be determined for its characterization. Direct current arc atomic emission spectroscopy (DCA-AES) is one of the useful methods for direct analysis of powder sample without dissolving the analyte into aqueous solution. However, the selection of standard material, which can overcome concerns such as matrix matching, is quite important to create adequate calibration curves for DCA-AES. In this study, we apply standard addition method using the certified U₃O₈ containing known amounts of metal impurities to avoid the matrix problems. The proposed method provides good results for determination of Fe, Cr and Ni contained in MOX samples at a significant quantity level. (author)