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The reliable determination of airborne radionuclides in air is a key aspect in decision-making for the protection against public exposure in the event of a nuclear or radiological emergency. Nowadays, this needs to be done in real time and at the international level. These needs require the development of fast response protocols and the harmonisation of results. This work presents two fast radiochemical methods for the simultaneous separation of alpha and beta emitters in aerosols and their performance in a series of samples. • Two radiochemical methods to simultaneous separation of Pu, U, Am and Sr in air filters are compared. • Radiochemical separations are based on extraction chromatography combining different resin cartridges in a tandem setup. • Methods are a good basis for fast analysis strategies in nuclear or radiological emergency scenarios. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A proficiency test amongst 15 Turkish laboratories with participation of 5 non-Turkish laboratories was organized to determine the 137 Cs, 40 K and 90 Sr massic activities in black tea powder samples. The bulk material, consisting of tea produced in 2014, was mixed with contaminated tea that was withdrawn from the market after the Chernobyl accident. Nineteen laboratories reported 41 results. The evaluation of the results was based on the accuracy and precision criteria adopted by the IAEA Proficiency Testing Group and resulted in 49% acceptable results, 19% acceptable with warning and 32% were found to be not acceptable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]