USE OF K(0)-NAA IN THE LIFE SCIENCES

The applicability and usefulness of k(0)-based reactor neutron activat ion analysis (NAA) in the life sciences is evaluated from the followin g examples: 1. Instrumental NAA of NIST SRM 1633a coal fly ash, as a q uality assessment; 2. Radiochemical NAA of Versieck's reference human serum, and-herewith associated-the development of practical correction procedures for neutron-induced reaction interferences and of improved methods to evaluate the detection efficiency and the correction for t rue coincidence; and 3. Determination of the lanthanides in plant leav es and lichens near a Portuguese coal-fired power station, which led t o the introduction of the Westcott formalism and to the use of a low-e nergy photon detector. As concluded, k(0)-based NAA is at present capa ble of tackling a large variety of analytical problems when it comes t o the multielement determination in environmental and biological matri ces.