A rapid method for the determination of 37Cs in seawater

A method is developed to measure Cs-137 in seawater. It entails the use of silica gel impregnated with hexacyanoferrates as an ion-exchanger to concentrate Cs-137 from large volumes of seawater, followed by gamma-ray spectrometry with a high efficiency HPGe detector. Both laboratory experiments and field operation resulted in satisfactory recovery of Cs-137, Compared with the traditional pre-concentration method using AMP as the scavenger, this method is more rapid, more cost-effective, and can be more easily performed aboard ships.