Species dependent studies of no-carrier-added (93m)Mo: A green method

The present paper reports a combination of radioanalytical and green methodology for the ultra-trace scale speciation of molybdenum. The differential attitude of iron-doped calcium alginate (Fe-CA) and chitosan biopolymers towards no-carrier-added (93m)Mo radionuclide was studied to develop environmentally sustainable speciation methodology in ultra-trace scale. The affinity of (93m)Mo towards the Fe-CA beads is greater than that of chitosan. Species information was obtained by comparing the adsorption profile of (93m)Mo on Fe-CA and chitosan biopolymer with the software code CHEAQS PRO program. From the experimental results it is concluded that no-carrier-added (93m)Mo radionuclide form mononuclear species instead of polynuclear species in aqueous solution. Use of biodegradable, non-toxic biopolymer makes this method a step forward towards green chemistry.