Determination of 90Sr and 210Pb in food samples by liquid scintillation counting after sequential separation with an extraction chromatographic column

Abstract

90Sr and 210Pb are considered to be key radionuclides in internal exposure resulting from dietary intake, however, the established methods employed for their detection are time-comsuming. A method for the sequential separation of 90Sr and 210Pb using a Sr·spec resin by LSC measurement is developed, which is highly suitable for food safety monitoring as its minimal sample requirements. The sequential separation of Sr and Pb from the sample was using 0.05 mol/L HNO3 and 0.05 mol/L C6H5O7(NH4)3. The chemical recoveries of Sr and Pb measured using ICP-OES were 72–83% and 80–88%, respectively. The minimum detectable activities of 90Sr and 210Pb in the food sample were 36.2 mBq/kg and 28.6 mBq/kg, respectively, obtained from a 0.1 kg fresh sample and 300 min counting time. The method was validated using reference materials and compared with other methods. The feasibility of the developed method for other highly complex food matrices needs further investigation.