Combining X-ray fluorescence spectrometry and vibrational microscopy to assess highly heterogeneous, actinide-contaminated materials

Combining X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectrometry with micro-Ra-man and infrared spectroscopies is shown to be a powerful experimental approach in providing information on components present in highly heterogeneous materials which contain or have been in contact with actinides. In this initial study, the quantitative XRF data demonstrate a correlation in the relative amounts of plutonium with other elements such as strontium and yttrium. The XRF mapping provides further evidence for correlation of these (and other) elements and identifies regions of interest within the sample to be further studied. These regions were then examined by vibrational microscopy to supply information on molecular species present and their spatial distribution. This experimental approach provides insight into very complex samples and provides a technique capable of exploring interactions of molecular components with actinides in complex media.