GEL to Present Technical Paper on Carbon 14

Date(s): March 15 - March 19, 2015

Location: Phoenix, Arizona

GEL Laboratories, LLC has been accepted for a technical paper and presentation at the Waste Management (WM2015) Conference, March 15-19, 2015, Phoenix, Arizona, USA.

Carbon 14 has become the predominant isotope released during normal nuclear power operations.  This shift has occurred with improved fuel assemblies and as nuclear power plants have concentrated on imporovements in waste management operations.  Carbon 14 can be difficult to fully contain during normal operations, outages and refueling cycles.

GEL has developed a proprietary method for sampling and analysis of Carbon 14 in the airborne effluents of nuclear sites.  The method utilizes a proven sorbent capable of trapping carbon dioxide meeting the following specifications:

• validated to retain 99.9% of 14C in air
• validated at collection rates of approximately 1.0 liter per minute
• validated for total collection capacity over a 1 week sampling interval
• accurate analysis of 14C over a wide range of concentrations
• methodology free from interference by other radionuclides
• detection limits of approximately 0.02 Bq/cubic meter

GEL provides this service currently enabling weekly monitoring of the environment for releases of carbon.  Utilization of the cartridge under normal conditions has been shown to provide a calculated exposure pathway to the public of less than 0.1 mSV/yr (10 mRem/yr).  For more information please contact Mr. Robert Wills, RRPT at [email protected] or 843-556-8171 ext. 4310.