Energy Dispersive X‐Ray Fluorescence Analysis of Uranium Considering the Satellite Structure of the Sr Kα Peak

ABSTRACT Due to the adverse health effects associated with uranium absorption by the body, it is essential to rapidly assess the extent of uranium release into the environment in the event of a nuclear accident to formulate appropriate response measures. This study investigated challenges associated with analyzing uranium in strontium‐rich samples, such as soil, rock, land water, and seawater, using energy‐dispersive X‐ray fluorescence (EDXRF) analysis. In EDXRF spectroscopy, the U Lα peak at 13.61 keV and the Sr Kα peak at 14.17 keV are clearly separated; however, in strontium‐rich samples, a satellite structure appears on the low‐energy side of the Sr Kα peak, which interferes with uranium analysis based on the U Lα peak. To address this issue, a simple Gaussian function was employed as the component describing the satellite structure, and a combined fitting function was subsequently constructed to allow the simultaneous analysis of the uranium and strontium peaks. This approach enabled the analysis of trace uranium in samples coexisting with large amounts of strontium. Specifically, considering the abundance of strontium in environmental samples, the developed method should facilitate uranium analysis in such samples in the event of a nuclear accident.