Polarographic Determination of Technetium and Ruthenium Radionuclides in Fission Products

Journal Article · Wed Jun 01 00:00:00 EDT 1960 · Analytical Chemistry

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1021/ac60163a014· OSTI ID:4839926

Love, D. L.; Greendale, A. E.

A rapid method using polarographic techniques has been developed for the determination of technetium-99m and ruthenium-103,106 radionuclides in fission product mixtures. A known fraction of the technetium and ruthenium radionuclides is selectively reduced at the dropping mercury electrode to an oxidation state soluble in mercury. and the resulting amalgam is removed from the fissionproduct solution by falling into carbon tetrachloride. An assay of the separated radionuclides is made by gammacounting the amalgam. The precision obtained for technetium-99m is within about 1%, the accuracy agreed with the radiochemical procedure (for molybdenum-99) within 2%, and the decontamination factor from other fission products is about 10/sup 5/. A single separation requires about 3 minutes; if enough activity is present, only a few seconds. The rapidity of the entire procedure (including calculation of the number of fissions) is illustrated by the fact that 50 analyses can be completed in 1 day by two people.

• Research Organization: U.S. Naval Radiological Defense Lab., San Francisco
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE
• NSA Number: NSA-14-015603
• OSTI ID: 4839926
• Journal Information: Analytical Chemistry, Vol. 32, Issue 7; Other Information: Orig. Receipt Date: 31-DEC-60; ISSN 0003-2700
• Publisher: American Chemical Society (ACS)
• Country of Publication: Country unknown/Code not available
• Language: English

Related Subjects

38 RADIATION CHEMISTRY, RADIOCHEMISTRY, AND NUCLEAR CHEMISTRY
CARBON TETRACHLORIDE
COUNTERS
DECONTAMINATION
ELECTRODES
FISSION PRODUCTS
GAMMA RADIATION
MERCURY
MERCURY ALLOYS
POLAROGRAPHY
QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS
REDUCTION
RUTHENIUM 103
RUTHENIUM 106
RUTHENIUM ISOTOPES
TECHNETIUM 99
TECHNETIUM ISOTOPES