It has been found possible to determine quickly the concentrations of molybdenum and ruthenium in non-radioactive alloys representative of high burn-up reactor fuels by the method of X-ray emission spectrometry. Preliminary steps of chemical dissolution and separation are not required. The alloys, essentially ternaries of molybdenum and ruthenium with uranium, are being studied because they are considered to typify the alloys which will result from cycling uranium fuel elements through the sequence of fabrication, use and pyro.metallurgical processing.
The analytical procedure involves sampling of the ingot by slicing with a silicon carbide wheel at the plane of interest and reducing the surface to the flatness and finish obtained by a five-minute grinding and polishing operation. In the X-ray spectrograph the flat surface is examined for the intensities of its molybdenum and ruthenium K emission lines, with counting times of one to eight minutes. Calibration plots of intensity versus chemically determined weight per cent are established and used for subsequent sets of analyses.