Radioxenon standards used in laboratory inter-comparisons

Area of Science:

• Nuclear chemistry
• Environmental monitoring
• Radiochemistry

Background:

• The International Monitoring System (IMS) requires robust quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) for its laboratories.
• Historically, a lack of activity concentration standards for Xenon-133 (Xe-133) hindered effective benchmarking.
• Independent laboratories have now produced Xe-133 reference standards.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe the preparation methods for Xe-133 activity concentration standards.
• To report the outcomes of the 2014 Xe-133 laboratory inter-comparison exercise.
• To evaluate Xenon-127 (Xe-127) as a potential isotope for future QA/QC.

Main Methods:

• Development of preparation methods for Xe-133 activity concentration reference standards.
• Conducting a laboratory inter-comparison exercise using these standards in 2014.
• Preparation of a Xe-127 activity concentration standard and a Xe-127 inter-comparison exercise.

Main Results:

• Successful production of two independent Xe-133 activity concentration reference standards.
• Completion of the 2014 Xe-133 laboratory inter-comparison exercise.
• Demonstration of Xe-127's suitability for QA/QC of remote IMS noble gas stations.

Conclusions:

• The availability of Xe-133 standards enables crucial QA/QC for the IMS.
• Xe-127 is a promising alternative isotope for QA/QC of remote noble gas monitoring.
• These advancements support the reliability of the International Monitoring System.