Secondary standardisation of 95mTc.

Abstract The radionuclide 95m Tc, which has a half-life of 61(2) days and emits a number of γ -rays, may be used in radiochemical analysis as a yield tracer for the long-lived fission product 99 Tc. In this work, we present (i) the production of 95m Tc via an ( α , 2n) reaction with stable 93 Nb (a method which does not result in the production of any 97m Tc, 98 Tc or 99 Tc), (ii) the chemical separation of 95m Tc from niobium via coprecipitation, liquid–liquid extraction and liquid chromatography, and (iii) the secondary standardisation of 95m Tc with high-resolution γ -ray spectrometry and an ionisation chamber system.