Nuclear and Chemical Dating Techniques - American Chemical Society

radiocarbon dating, in which he discusses topics ranging from cosmic ray physics to the history of modern man. The remaining chapters are grouped into...
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of Dionex Corp. said IC is being used in all the major deposition networks assessing the "acid r a i n " phe­ nomena. Water pollution analyses The analysis of priority pollutants in water is a continuing area of concern for analytical scientists. J. Fulford of Sciex said that the TAGA system, the triple quadrupole mass spectrometer, has been used to obtain preliminary results for the direct analysis of drinking water without any preconcentration. Detection limits were in the 1-50 ppb range. A main advantage of this system is that the entire analysis can be done on site, thus minimizing the possibility of contamination, deg­ radation, or transformation of the samples. Ion chromatography can also be used without sample preparation. A. W. Fitchett of Dionex Corp. said that the IC has the ability to determine both high (ng/L) and low ( μ / n g / L ) level concentrations on the same in­ strumentation. This allows the analyst to determine both macronutrients and micronutrients in ground, surface, and wastewater samples. He explained that a new type of analysis, which he called mobile phase ion chromatography, permits the analysis of a wide variety of hydrophobic and hydrophilic anions and cations such as aliphatic and aro­ matic sulfuric acid surfactants, alkanolamines, and quaternary amines. Water scientists are often concerned with the particles in water systems. Methylene blue adsorption has been used for many years to estimate sur­ face area. F. W. Page of the University of New Hampshire said that pyronine Y, similar in structure to methylene blue, can be used as an alternate sorbate for surface area measurements. Pyronine Y fluoresces in solution but does not when bound to particles. Adsorption data are necessary to. predict the fate and transport of or­ ganic pollutants in the environment. If an organic pollutant fluoresces, it is possible to get adsorption data without having to effect a separation. A. J. Lapen of the University of New Hampshire said that if the adsorption causes the fluorescence to be quenched, then the extent of adsorp­ tion can be determined directly from fluorescence intensities. Adsorption data can also be obtained by adding fluorophors to the sample; the fluo­ rescence from adsorbed fluorophors is more polarized than the fluorescence from free fluorophors. In some cases the analysis of toxic metals is important such as, for ex­ ample, in drinking water samples. D.

E. Shrader of Varian Instrument ex­ plained that furnace atomic absorption can be used to analyze for seven metals regulated in drinking water, and met­ als listed as hazardous wastes. The metals included As, Ba, Cd, Cr, Pb, Se, and Ag. Development of an oil shale industry presents a challenge to analytical chemists. Surface retorting of oil shale produces large volumes of solid waste. When the retorted oil shale contacts water, the aqueous solution rapidly develops a salt content often higher than 2% and the pH can approach 12. C. L. Grant of the University of New Hampshire discussed the extensive analytical data contained from a composite aqueous sample from a 50-year-old retorted shale pile gener­ ated by the Rulison project, an un­ derground nuclear explosion con­ ducted by the U.S. Department of In­ terior to generate oil or gas.

Nuclear and Chemical Dating Techniques Interpreting the Environmental Record

A C S S y m p o s i u m S e r i e s N o . 176 Lloyd A. C u r r i e ,

Editor

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Standards

Based on a symposium jointly sponsored by the Divisions of Nuclear Chemistry and Technology, Geochemistry, and His­ tory of Chemistry of the American Chem­ ical Society. Latest techniques for extracting in­ formation from archaeological and en­ vironmental samples This 24-chapter book reviews the latest developments and state of the art of physicochemical dating methods to­ gether with biogeochemical and ar­ chaeological applications.

Rainfall can leach hazardous waste materials from landfilled sites. C. M. White of the Pittsburgh Energy Technology Center of DOE said that analytical techniques are being devel­ oped for 20 target compounds in aqueous leachate. Obviously, soils differ in their abil­ ities to adsorb hazardous materials. J. D. Stuart of the University of Con­ necticut told how a series of eight soils had been used to contrast the removal of phenol and trichloroethylene from water. The uptake of these two chem­ icals was discussed in relationship to the total organic matter, clay content, and surface area. Humic and fulvic acids play a key role in the speciation, transport, and bioavailability of organic and inor­ ganic compounds in both surface water and groundwater. G. A. Baur of the University of New Hampshire dis­ cussed how time and mineral acid composition effect the removal of such materials from soil humic acids. —Stanton Miller

The fascinating volume begins with an historical perspective by the late W.F. Libby, the Nobelist who developed radiocarbon dating, in which he discusses topics ranging from cosmic ray physics to the history of modern man. The remaining chapters are grouped into three sections: cosmochemical and geochemical appli­ cations; natural archives; and chemical evolution, extinction, and archaeology. CONTENTS Historical Perspective of Nuclear Dating · Radioactive and Chemical Dating · ' Electrostatic Tandems · Mea­ surement of Natural l 0 B e and 14 C · Electrostatic Ac­ celerator Dating of Radiocarbon · Ion Probe Mg Isotopic Measurements · 8 1 Kr-Kr Dating by Mass Spectrometry • Laser Microprobe 39 Ar- 4 PAr Dating · Resonance Ioni­ zation Spectroscopy · Counters, Accelerators, and Chemistry · Dating Groundwater · Isotopic Records from Tree Rings · Fluctuation of Atmospheric Radio­ carbon · Historic Climate Indicators · Glaciochemical Dating Techniques · Dating Polar Ice by 1 4 C and 2 2 2 Rn · Dating Recent Events in Sediments by 2 l 0 P b · DeepSea Sedimentation · The Antiquity of Carbon · Cause of the Cretaceous-Tertiary Extinctions · IncenseBurner Trade in the Palenque Area * , 4 C Dating of an Iron Bloom · Problems in the Radiocarbon Dating of Bone · Travertines from Archaeological Sites

516 pages (1982) Clothbound US & Canada $48.95 Export $58.95 LC 81-20649 ISBN 0-8412-0669-4 Order f r o m : Distribution Dept. 21 American Chemical Society 1155 Sixteenth St., N.W. Washington, D.C. 20036 or CALL TOLL FREE 800-424-6747 and use your credit card.

Environ. Sci. Technol., Vol. 16, No. 5, 1982

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