Development of the uranium isotope ratio analysis for a single uranium particle by MC-ICP-MS using synthetic uranium particles

Tomita, Jumpei  ; Tomita, Ryohei ; Suzuki, Daisuke   ; Yasuda, Kenichiro   ; Miyamoto, Yutaka   

The impact of the uranium from the process blank for a single uranium particle analysis by MC-ICP-MS was evaluated quantitatively. The synthetic uranium particles prepared by impregnating of U (NBL CRM U100) to porous silica were used in this study. A conical-bottom bottle was used to dissolve a uranium particle with a small amount of acid. The amount of U and U/U of the process blank were 0.2 pg and 0.0190, respectively. This ratio was similar to that of CRM U015 (0.0155), which was used for the detector calibration of MC-ICP-MS, indicating that the process blank was derived from ultra-trace level of uranium remining in the desolvator. The analytical results indicated that the U/U ratio could be determined accurately by MC-ICP-MS when the particle contained more than 23 pg of U.