- Zhifang Chai: Laboratory of Nuclear Analytical Techniques, Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing. chaizf@lnat.ihep.a.c.cn
Recent achievements in speciation studies of trace elements in the biological and environmental sciences by nuclear analytical techniques, mainly molecular activation analysis, position-sensitive spectrometry with a variety of exciting sources, and synchronous radiation-based analytical techniques (although radioisotope or enriched stable isotope-based speciation techniques are also used), particularly in our laboratory, are outlined. In this paper the merits and drawbacks of the nuclear analytical techniques are discussed, as are reagent blanks, contamination, and artifacts.