alpha/beta ratios for radionuclide identification

[Teresa G Hefley <THEFLEY@pantex.com>]

I am in the process of counting various contaminated paper smears,
spiked paper smears, NIST traceable sources, spiked glass fiber filters,
and contaminated cellulose nitrate filters with a Tennelec LB5100 gas
flow proportional counter.  The nuclides of concern are u-238, th-232
and pu-239.  I am attempting to show that the differences in the
alpha/beta ratio for each nuclide can determine the identity of the nuclide
without using alpha spectrometry.  Does anyone have any experience
using this method of nuclide identification?  I would like to know what
results you have observed and what type of samples were used in the
testing.  I would appreciate any comments on this matter.  

Teresa Hefley, RPT
Pantex Plant
Amarillo TX
thefley@pantex.com


************************************************************************
The RADSAFE Frequently Asked Questions list, archives and subscription
information can be accessed at http://www.ehs.uiuc.edu/~rad/radsafe.html