Research Development of Inorganic and Isotopic Mass Spectrometry in Analysis of Uranium Materials

This paper briefly reviews the recent research work on the application of inorganic and isotropic mass spectrometry in analysis of uranium materials in the Institute of Materials, China Academy of Engineering Physics. In the measurement of trace uranium isotopes, a sample preparation technique using graphene oxide as ionization enhancer was developed, which greatly enhanced the ionization efficiency. In analysis of impurity elements in uranium materials, an on-line separation and analysis method based on microfluidic chip coupled with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) was developed to improve the automation of analysis. In the direct determination of impurity elements in uranium by glow discharge mass spectrometry, a set of universal relative sensitivity factors was obtained on the basis of studying the influencing factors of relative sensitivity factors, and the accurate determination of impurity elements in uranium without matrix matching reference materials was realized. Segregation behavior, inclusion characterization and hydrogenation/oxidation corrosion behavior of uranium and uranium alloys were studied by time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS), which provided a characterization method for the study of uranium materials. On the basis of summarizing the research progress of inorganic and isotropic mass spectrometry in uranium material analysis, the prospect of its development was forecasted.