The possible discovery of neutron activation in 1910

Environmental nuclear forensics: the need for a new scientific discipline

“…This was not always easy to achieve, especially since the (dominant) radionuclide(s) of a sample with multiple radioactive constituents often remained unidentified. Early measurements in the first half of the twentieth century, therefore, were often conducted in comparison with a Buniversal^comparator, e.g., a uranium standard with a certain mass that was defined as a Buranium unit^ (Steinhauser et al 2016;Steinhauser et al 2013). For example, the Austrian chemists Carl Auer von Welsbach used a small amount of uranium oxide (U 3 O 8 ), spread on a metal surface, and defined it as his uranium unit.…”

New Forensic Insight into Carl Auer von Welsbach's 1910 Observation of Induced Radioactivity: Theoretical, Experimental and Historical Approaches

“…In our previous report (Steinhauser et al . 2013), we already outlined that there are several reasons to believe that Auer von Welsbach incidentally observed neutron activation.…”

“…Auer von Welsbach offered his gas mantle factory in Atzgersdorf (near Vienna) for this industrial endeavor. He expected to receive a fraction of the produced radium for his own research, however, as described previously (Steinhauser et al . 2013), his requests for some of the radium were turned down.…”

“…We speculate that beryllium was incorporated into the hydrates as a contamination in the course of the radium production in Auer's incandescent gas mantle factory in Atzgersdorf. In that factory, large amounts of beryllium salts were used for the production of the gas mantles (Steinhauser et al . 2013).…”

“…However, is not it remarkable that Auer von Welsbach isolated significant activities 402 of radium-226 from that residues of the radium-production? The materials were significantly 403 depleted in radium, but Auer von Welsbach isolated even visible amounts of radium as discussed in 404 (Steinhauser, Löffler, and Adunka 2013). 405…”