Open AccessCOMPARISON OF RESULTS FOR QUARTER 3 SURFACE WATER SPLIT SAMPLES COLLECTED AT THE NUCLEAR FUEL SERVICES SITE, ERWIN, TENNESSEE
Author(s) -
Not Given Author
Publication year - 2013
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Reports
DOI - 10.2172/1096526
Subject(s) - plutonium , conventional pci , radiochemistry , sample (material) , uranium , environmental science , radionuclide , sampling (signal processing) , chemistry , analytical chemistry (journal) , environmental chemistry , nuclear physics , chromatography , physics , medicine , optics , psychiatry , detector , myocardial infarction
Oak Ridge Associated Universities (ORAU), under the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE) contract, collected split surface water samples with Nuclear Fuel Services (NFS) representatives on March 20, 2013. Representatives from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation were also in attendance. Samples were collected at four surface water stations, as required in the approved Request for Technical Assistance number 11-018. These stations included Nolichucky River upstream (NRU), Nolichucky River downstream (NRD), Martin Creek upstream (MCU), and Martin Creek downstream (MCD). Both ORAU and NFS performed gross alpha and gross beta analyses, and Table 1 presents the comparison of results using the duplicate error ratio (DER), also known as the normalized absolute difference. A DER {<=} 3 indicates that at a 99% confidence interval, split sample results do not differ significantly when compared to their respective one standard deviation (sigma) uncertainty (ANSI N42.22). The NFS split sample report does not specify the confidence level of reported uncertainties (NFS 2013). Therefore, standard two sigma reporting is assumed and uncertainty values were divided by 1.96. In conclusion, most DER values were less than 3 and results are consistent with low (e.g., background) concentrations. The gross beta result for sample 5198W0012 was the exception. The ORAU result of 9.23 {+-} 0.73 pCi/L from location MCD is well above NFSs result of -0.567 {+-} 0.63 pCi/L (non-detected). NFSs data package included a detected result for U-233/234, but no other uranium or plutonium detection, and nothing that would suggest the presence of beta-emitting radionuclides. The ORAU laboratory reanalyzed sample 5198W0012 using the remaining portion of the sample volume and a result of 11.3 {+-} 1.1 pCi/L was determined. As directed, the laboratory also counted the filtrate using gamma spectrometry analysis and identified only naturally occurring or ubiquitous man-made constituents, including beta emitters that are presumably responsible for the elevated gross beta values