A Ruggedized Ultrasensitive Field Air Sampler for Differentially Determining Tritium Oxide and Gas in Ambient Air A tmosphere

摘要

In order to satisfy current upgraded monitoring requirements of Mound Laboratory's comprehensive environmental control and monitoring program, a continuing effort is being made to develop tritium air sampling which will provide a complete, reliable analysis of the ambient environment for tritium oxide and elemental tritium. The instrument described in this interim development report is an operational, practical, ruggedized, ultrasensitive, tritium field air sampler assembled for the simultaneous, differential sampling of the environmental air for tritium oxide and elemental tritium. The system uses hardware assembled and packaged in such manner as to facilitate use in the field as well as in the laboratory. The sampling system occupies relatively small space and is simple to operate. The detection sensitivity approaches tritium background levels. This sensitivity is achieved by high volume sampling, efficient removal of tritium oxide and elemental tritium ("tritium gas"), and counting the recovered fractions by liquid scintillation spectrometry. The Mound Laboratory environmental monitoring capability was improved significantly by the addition of this monitoring system to the already comprehensive instrumentation in daily use by the Laboratory.