The Atomic Fingerprint: Neutron Activation Analysis

by Bernard Keisch
U. S. Energy Research and Development Administration Office of Public Affairs Washington, D.C. 20545
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 79-182556 1972
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A 19th century photograph restored by neutron activation. This picture, which is in the collection of the Smithsonian Institution, was exposed to neutrons in a nuclear reactor and then placed in contact with modern photographic film. The original, which had been taken by William Henry Fox Talbot who began his career in 1834, is badly faded.
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You are an analytical chemist working for a plastics manufacturer. You have been asked by the plant superintendent to determine why some of the plastic coming from the plant has been discolored.