These five situations are intended to show why neutron activation
analysis is used, when it can be applied, and how it works.
In the real world, there are often many reasons _why_ this kind of
analysis is used. As in the situations described here, it may be the
only workable method. Sometimes there may be a choice of methods, but
activation analysis is used because it has certain peculiar advantages
or because it happens to be the most convenient. There are other times,
however, when other analytical methods can and should be used. Such
situations arise when the element sought is not easily activated, or
when a satisfactory alternative method exists that is more economical or
more convenient. The points to remember about the use of activation
analysis are that:
1. In many cases, no elaborate sample preparation procedure is
required.
2. For many elements, it is the most sensitive analytical technique
known.
The diversity of _applications_ in which activation analysis is used is
enormous and will probably continue to be. The examples given here
represent only a tiny fraction of circumstances in which the method has
been used. Consider that it has been used successfully: