Hybrid K-Edge Densitometer - More than 10 Years of EURATOM Safeguards Experience

The introduction of the combined use of K-edge densitometry and X-ray fluorescence analysis techniques, known as Hybrid K-Edge Densitometer (HKED), represented an important breakthrough in the timely verification possibility of input liquors in reprocessing plants by Euratom Safeguards. The HKED not only allows on-site verification of untreated highly active input solutions, it also offers the valuable advantage of providing the Safeguards authority with a completely independent verification technique versus the traditional classical chemical method of IDMS, used by the plant operator for accountancy. This paper describes the experience gained over more than a decade of using the HKED for Euratom Safeguards verification and outlines the advantage vis-à-vis the classical chemical method, also used by the plant operator.