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Science 30 April 1971:
Vol. 172. no. 3982, pp. 466 - 468
DOI: 10.1126/science.172.3982.466
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Articles

X-ray Fluorescence: Detection of Lead in Wall Paint

Gerard R. Laurer 1, Theo. J. Kneip 1, Roy E. Albert 1, and Frederick S. Kent 2

1 Institute of Environmental Medicine, New York University Medical Center, New York 10016
2 Environmental Health Services, New York City Department of Health, New York 10013

An instrument has been developed for the in situ determination of lead on painted surfaces. It utilizes, as a source of gamma rays, radioactive cadmium-109 and its daughter silver-109 (metastable) to excite the K series x-rays of lead, and a solid-state, lithium-drifted germanium detector. The device, which is capable of detecting 0.26 milligram of lead per square centimeter of paint [approximately 3 percent (by weight) of lead in a single coat] beneath ten layers of lead-free paint, has been tested in a preliminary survey of several tenement apartments in New York City.


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Heavy Elements in Surface Materials: Determination by Alpha Particle Scattering.
T. E. Economou, W. A. Anderson, E. M. Blume, and A. L. Turkevich (1973)
Science 181, 156-158
   Abstract »    PDF »
Elevated Blood Lead Levels and the in Situ Analysis of Wall Paint by X-Ray Fluorescence.
R. M. Reece, A. J. Reed, C. S. Clark, R. Angoff, K. R. Casey, R. S. Challop, and E. A. McCabe (1972)
Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med 124, 500-502
   Abstract »    PDF »


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