S. Korea builds lab to check IAEA nuke samples

Email|Print|Comments       twitter     facebook     Sina Microblog     reddit    

South Korea has finished building a laboratory that can assist analyzing nuclear material samples from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the Yonhap news agency quoted the country's Nuclear Safety and Security Commission as saying on Wednesday.

The commission said the Clean Laboratory for Analysis of Safeguards Samples (CLASS) will begin receiving test samples from the IAEA within this year and help determine whether a country engages in nuclear activities and violates IAEA's safeguards protocol.

The IAEA approved South Korea's membership in its network of analytical laboratories (NWAL) last December on condition that the South Korean laboratory is able to detect and weigh 1 nanogram ( one-billionth of a gram) of uranium and 1 picogram (one-trillionth of a gram) of plutonium in any given sample, according to the commission.

"With the construction of the laboratory, the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute will be able to start receiving IAEA samples within the year and begin its analysis of international inspection samples, and also join the NWAL in the area of particle analysis following its membership in the area of bulk analysis," the commission was quoted by Yonhap as saying.

Comparing with bulk analysis, particle analysis is more accurate that can help determine whether a country reprocessed spent fuel, possibly to generate weapons-grade nuclear material through analyzing radioactive isotopes, the commission said.

• S. Korean president meets vietnamese top leaders in Hanoi
• China urges Japan to effectively deal with Fukushima accident fallout
• S. Korea approves arrest of leftist lawmaker
• S. Korea, DPRK begin talks on family reunion
• S.Korea frustrated over lack of progress Kaesong talks
• S. Korea says top priority in talks with DPRK lies in recurrence prevention
• One Chinese man dead while building sewer pipes in S. Korea
• S. Korea puts Kaesong issue before Mt. Kumgang tour
• China, S. Korea expected to finalize first-stage FTA talks in September
• S. Korea, DPRK agree to hold government meeting

We Recommend

• DPRK holds military parade to mark 65th founding anniv.
• Highlights of MAKS 2013 Int'l Aviation and Space Show
• 10th China-ASEAN Expo opens in Nanning
• Eagle Boy takes to sky to break another record
• 12-year-old boy becomes pillar of the family
• Eye-gouged boy receives blind rehabilitation in Shanxi
• Top 10 naked hotels in the world
• The most gorgeous Chinese women in the eyes of foreigners
• A collection of bizarre rooftop buildings around China