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AWALYTICAL C H E M I S T R Y Walter J. Murghy, Edltor -
New Service to Analysts
A Iiei,iis:il of the titles in tlic syniposiiirii indicates :L vei'). thorough es:miiiiation of this very useful tool of the :in:ilyst. Thursday morning will be given over to :I Symposium O I I Evaluation ofErrors in Analytical Chemistry Laboratory Prartices. h considerable portion of tlie session will lie occupied by a discussion period. This symposium is cosponsored by tlie Division of Chemical Education. The divisional dinner will be held on Kednesday evening and the highly popular round-table-discussion type of meeting scheduled for Friday morning will be on the topic, "The Kjeldahl Method for the Determination of Nitrogen." This is the first time that the divisional program at a national meeting has run from Monday through Friday, one more indication of tlie sustained growth of anal>%ic:ilchemistry.
C
lreiiiical and Engineering Xcux in its issue of August 11
publishes the information that Curbide and Carbon ('lmiicals Corp., operator of the Oak Ridge Sational Laboratory for the At,omic Energy Commission, is offering another w.r-ice comparable to its radioisotope distribution program. Tnrlustrial, scientific, and medical groups can have samples :inalyzerl for impurities, using :t highly accurate method derised a t ORNL. The technique followed involves p1:wing the test sample in the Oak Ridge graphite-uranium reactor, and exposing it to neutron bombardment, causing traces of impurities in the material to become artificially radioactive. The neutron-activation method of uiialysis detects and riiewures many elements occurring in traces so slight they cannot he identified by other chemical or physical testing methods. According to information furnished by ORIYL, as litt'le :is 0.000000007 gram can be measured with an accuracy of lo%, tising highly sensitive instruments and special radiation detectors. The radiation characteristics of the :wtificially radio:trtive isotopes produced are not duplicated in any two radioisotopes. They can be precisdy measured, permitting ident'ification of the substance and determination of quantity. One great advantage of the new technique is that contamitiation is negligible in neutron-activation analysis, and exists (inly when the material contains large aniounts that strongly :iherb neut.rons. The method permits examination of larger xuiiples than amounts used in conventional analyses. The technique is expected to be useful in determining riiiide quantities of element's in biological subst'ances, fertilizers. fine chemicals, foods, insect,icicles, lubricants. metals, plast'ics, toxicants, and a host of ot'her products. Obviously, many imporbant peacetime problems are being worked on by our nuclear scientists despite the emphasis placed on weapons because of the continued unsettled international conditions. The field of analysis is receiving a great deal ( i f attention at ORNL and other cent'ers of nurlear research. The new service is under the direction of the radioiostope wntrol department of the operations division. the group responsible for administration of the r d o i s o t o p e distribution p h n . Analytical chemists should take immediate advantage of :t promising new tool with which to esplore the unknown.
A Record Program at Atlantic City
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program of the D i ~ i s i o nof .41ialytical Chemistry for the >all meeting of the . ~ * ; R I C A N CHEMICAL SOCIETY at Atlantic City, September 14 to 19, is one of the largest ever arranged by the division. The general papers total an even 50, with sessions on lfontlay morning and afternoon, Wednesday afternoon, Thursday aftei noon. and Friday morning. Tuesday morning and afteinoon \vi11 be devoted to 22 1i:ipers on the subject of "X-Rays RS 311 Analytical Tool." HE
On to Oxford
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week before the ACS Atlantic City nieeting B large gathering of analytical chemists will take place at Oxford. England, where the analytical section of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry will stage what is espected to be a pattern-making congress. Our readers will recall t'hat many of the European member s of the International Union expressed the opinion while attending the Union and Congress meetings in Yew York last September that most European cities could not accommodate :I full congress covering all the principal fields of chemistry and chemical technology. The alternative, of course, is a series of congresses, such as the one on analytical chemistry a t Oxford. Frankly we prefer full congresses, but the new plan deserves an adequate trial. T h e meeting of analysts a t Oxford and the Congress at Stockholm next year when the Section on Physical Chemistry will meet a t the time of the 11th conference of the Union should demonstrat'e lvhich plan has the most to offer the chemical profession and t'he advancement of cheniistry and chemical technology. The interest of American analytical chemists in the Union continues to grow at a very encouraging pare. Several froin this country will attend, including I. AI. Kolthoff and S. IC. Q. dshley, n h o are officers of the section. The pre,ient chairnim of the ACS Ilivision of Analytical Chemistry, B. L. Clarke. will be present and one of the principal addresses will be giveii by Ralph H. Niiller, who writes the monthly column on instrumentation in AXILYTICAL CHslrlIsmy. We hope more analyst's in this count'ry will take a n active interest in the analytical section of the International Union. I n this issue on page 1380 readers will find a detailed report of recent activities of the section and a list of members of several committees. l y e are indebted to Dr. Ashley for this informative news report. Drs. Kolthoff and Ashley would like to bring the nest analytical congress to the United States in 1956. While there are many obstacles, chiefly that of finances, they are not insurmountable if every individual in this country who is connected with malytical chemistry will help.
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