- By:
- Hunter, Brandon W; Manard, Benjamin T; Mcfarlane, Joanna ; Rallabandi, Vandana P; Stanberry, Jordan S; Szakas, Sarah E; Tsouris, Constantinos ; Vick, Matthew C; Wiechert, Alexander I; Willocks, Jonathan ; Weber, Charles F
- Journal Name:
- Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry
- Volume:
- 335
- Issue Number:
- 1
- Publication Date:
- January 21, 2026
- View DOI Listing:
- https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-025-10588-z
Abstract
Environmental samples often contain innocuous components that make trace actinide analysis difficult and expensive. Therefore, it is expedient to separate these materials from actinide particles. One characteristic of many actinides is that they are paramagnetic. High-gradient magnetic filtration (HGMF) is a non-destructive technique that selectively captures magnetic constituents from a matrix containing non-magnetic species. In this work, a novel HGMF device made of a permanent magnet array was used to effectively separate UO2 particles from undesirable soil species. Up to 88% of the UO2 particles present in suspensions were effectively captured by HGMF, resulting in their enrichment and a substantial reduction in the concentrations of other constituents.
