Abstract
Extensive sedimentary phosphate deposits exist in the Sirhan-Turayf basin in northwestern Saudi Arabia containing significant amounts of uranium, thorium, vanadium and rare earth elements. The determination of the concentration and pattern of distribution of some of these elements is essential for economic aspects. This study reports the analysis of vanadium in selected phosphate rock samples from the basin using accelerator-based thermal neutrons activation analysis (TNAA). Samples were irradiated in a thermal neutron flux of 2.5·10 6 n·cm -2.s -1. The induced activity was measured with a HP-GMX detector coupled to a PC-based data acquisition and analysis system. The facility was calibrated using certified standards of vanadium. The minimum detection limit of vanadium was about 1 mg. Three independent measurements on each sample yielded comparable results indicating the reliability of the technique. The vanadium concentrations in the samples vary from 23 to 457 ppm.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 507-511 |
| Number of pages | 5 |
| Journal | Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry |
| Volume | 261 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2004 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:This study is a part of the Center for Applied Physical Sciences project supported by the Research Institute of King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. The support of the Accelerator Operation and the Radiation Protection Groups in this Center during the experiment is gratefully acknowledged. Our thanks are also extended to W. S. MATTER and Z. R. EL-NAGGAR for providing samples and A. Z. ALI for his help in drafting maps.
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Analytical Chemistry
- Nuclear Energy and Engineering
- Radiology Nuclear Medicine and imaging
- Pollution
- Spectroscopy
- Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health
- Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis