Analysis of technetium-99 in soil and deposition samples by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry

Technetium-99 in soil and deposition samples (containing rain and dry fallout) collected in Japan were determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). In this study, two preliminary experiments were also performed; one was to check Tc loss in a soil sample during incineration using two different soil types, and the other was to measure the interference with the count in a 95mTc solution at mass of 99 by ICP-MS. It was found that no loss of 95mTc from the soil samples contaminated for 1 month and the solution contained a nuclide at the mass.