Improved method for the determination of strontium-90 in soils and sands.

Abstract

The method for the determination of strontium-90 in environmental materials used in this laboratory has been found to be subject to interference from large concentrations of iron and aluminium in soil extracts. This report deals with the development of a suitable solvent extraction procedure that will remove iron and aluminium without itself interfering in the determination. The method selected was the extraction of iron and aluminium acetylacetonates into chloroform at controlled values of pH. This procedure removed better than 95 per cent of both iron and aluminium and produced no undesirable complications. Normal recovery of strontium was better than 80 per cent.