Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 8, 2026

A Novel Technique for Raman Analysis of Highly Radioactive Samples Using Any Standard Micro-Raman Spectrometer
Published on: April 12, 2017
Study of gel materials as radioactive 222Rn gas detectors
G Espinosa1, J I Golzarri, J Rickards
1Instituto de Física, UNAM, Apartado Postal 20-364, México, DF 01000, México. espinosa@fisica.unam.mx
Abstract:
Commercial hair gel material (polyvinyl pyrolydone triethanolamine carbopol in water) and bacteriological agar (phycocolloid extracted from a group of red-purple algae, usually Gelidium sp.) have been studied as radioactive radon gas detectors. The detection method is based on the diffusion of the radioactive gas in the gel material, and the subsequent measurement of trapped products of the natural decay of radon by gamma spectrometry. From the several radon daughters with gamma radiation emission (214Pb, 214Bi, 214Po, 210Pb, 210Po), two elements, 214Pb (0.352 MeV) and 214Bi (0.609 MeV), were chosen for the analysis in this work; in order to determine the best sensitivity, corrections were made for the short half-life of the analysed isotopes. For the gamma spectrometry analysis, a hyperpure germanium solid state detector was used, associated with a PC multichannel analyser card with Maestro and Microsoft Excel software. The results show the viability of the method: a linear response in a wide radon concentration range (450-10,000 Bq m(-3)), reproducibility of data, easy handling and low cost of the gel material. This detection methodology opens new possibilities for measurements of radon and other radioactive gases.
Related Concept Videos
Gas Chromatography: Types of Detectors-II
Imaging Studies II: Positron Emission Tomography and Scintigraphy
Fundamental Principles of PET
Gas Chromatography: Types of Detectors-I
TCD is the earliest and most widely used detector that operates by measuring the changes in the thermal conductivity of the carrier gas. When a sample compound enters the detector,...
Radioactive Decay and Radiometric Dating
Isotopes and Radioisotopes
An isotope containing more...
Gas Chromatography: Overview of Detectors
A non-destructive detector allows a sample to be analyzed without altering or consuming it, meaning the sample can be collected after detection for further analysis. Examples include thermal conductivity detectors and...

