Isotopic Fractionation of Uranium in Sandstone

Relatively unoxidized black uranium ores from sandstone deposits in the western United States show deviations in the uranium-235 to uranium-234 ratio throughout a range from 40 percent excess uranium-234 to 40 percent deficient uranium-234 with respect to a reference uranium-235 to uranium-234 ratio. The deficient uranium-234 is leached preferentially to uranium-238 and the excess uranium-234 is believed to result from deposition of uranium-234 enriched in solutions from leached deposits.