Reduction of Technetium-99 by Cerium (III) for Efficient Separation from Molybdenum-99 using Aminated PVC Microspheres | ||||
| Egyptian Journal of Chemistry | ||||
| Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript, Available Online from 07 September 2025 | ||||
| Document Type: Original Article | ||||
| DOI: 10.21608/ejchem.2025.411224.12143 | ||||
 View on SCiNiTO | ||||
| Authors | ||||
Reham Elsayed Hassan1; Mohamed Mohamady ghobashy  2; Mohamed I. Aly3
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| 1Hot Laboratories Centre, Egyptian Atomic Energy Authority, Analytical chemistry and control department, Post Code 13759, Cairo, Egypt. | ||||
| 2Radiation Research of Polymer Chemistry Department, National Center for Radiation Research and Technology (NCRRT), Egyptian Atomic Energy Authority (EAEA), Cairo, Egypt | ||||
| 3Hot Laboratories Centre, Egyptian Atomic Energy Authority, Post Code 13759, Cairo, Egypt | ||||
| Abstract | ||||
| This study presents a novel approach for the efficient separation of Technetium-99 (Tc-99) from Molybdenum-99 (Mo-99) using cerium-mediated reduction coupled with aminated polyvinyl chloride (PVC-NH2) microspheres. The research addresses the critical need for improved radiochemical separation methods in nuclear medicine applications. Aminated PVC microspheres were synthesized through nucleophilic substitution with ethylene diamine and characterized using FTIR spectroscopy and SEM analysis, confirming successful surface functionalization with amino groups. The separation mechanism involves cerium(III) oxidation to cerium(IV) using perchloric acid as an optimal initiator, followed by selective reduction of Tc(VII) to Tc(IV), which exhibit enhanced affinity for the amino-functionalized adsorbent surface. Comprehensive optimization studies revealed that pH 7, 300 mg/L Ce(III) concentration, and 100 mM perchloric acid provide optimal separation conditions. Under these conditions, distribution coefficients reached 15,770 mL/g for Tc-99 and 8,972 mL/g for Mo-99, achieving separation factors of 60-70. Chromatographic separation using ascorbic acid as eluent demonstrated 93% Mo-99 recovery with minimal Tc-99 breakthrough (20%). Regeneration studies showed excellent material stability with 96.4% and 89.2% recovery efficiencies for Tc-99 and Mo-99, respectively, maintaining over 82% efficiency after four cycles. The method achieved 30-fold pre-concentration factors, significantly enhancing detection sensitivity for trace radioisotope analysis. | ||||
| Keywords | ||||
| Technetium-99; Molybdenum-99; Cerium-mediated reduction; Aminated PVC microspheres | ||||
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