METROLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF REPEATABILITY AND LABORATORY PRECISION OF THE NEUTRON-ACTIVATION ANALYSIS TECHNIQUE FOR SHORT-LIVED RADIONUCLIDES ON WWR-K

A new certified analytical technique (CAT) for neutron activation analysis (NAA) by short-lived radionuclides is being developed. Sample activation is performed using a pneumatic transport system (with a built-in specialized spectrometric complex) integrated into a dedicated horizontal channel of the WWR-K research nuclear reactor in the Institute of Nuclear Physics (Almaty city). The conditions for collecting experimental data and the algorithms for calculating metrological characteristics were determined in accordance with the requirements of the current regulatory framework and the State System for Ensuring the Uniformity of Measurements of the Republic of Kazakhstan. Calculations of the repeatability and laboratory precision indicators of the CAT were performed for a wide range of concentrations of the elements Al, Cl, Cu, Dy, In, Mn, Ti, and V. The results obtained are intended for preparation for the certification and inclusion of this CAT in the State Register of Measuring Instruments of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The methodology, which currently has no analogues either in the Republic of Kazakhstan or in the post-Soviet space, is intended for use on specific, unique experimental equipment for the study of solid powder samples.

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