Photon activation analysis of carbon in glasses for fiber amplifiers by using the flow method for the rapid separation of ¹¹C

Summary

We have studied the photon activation analysis of carbon in InF₃-based fluoride, chalcogenide and tellurite glasses for fiber amplifiers, and especially the nuclear interference from a matrix produced by (γ,n), (γ,2n), (γ,p) and (n,γ) reactions and a flow method for the rapid and simple separation of ¹¹C. A chemical separation technique is indispensable for determining carbon, because seventeen radionuclides are observed in these glasses. The flow method can sequentially be undertaken, the fusion of an irradiated sample with an oxidizer, the conversion of ¹¹C into ¹¹CO₂, and the absorption of ¹¹C in ethanolamine solution. We used a mixture of Pb₃O₄ and B₂O₃ as the oxidizer. There is interference with the ¹¹C measurement because ¹⁸F and ⁶⁸Ga are produced in fluoride and chalcogenide glasses by the ¹⁹F(γ,n), ²³Na(γ,αn) and ⁶⁹Ga(γ,n) reactions, respectively, and also absorbed in ethanolamine solution. Therefore, this flow method can only be applied to tellurite glasses. The chemical yield provided by the flow method was close to 100% when determining carbon in Japanese Iron and Steel Certified Reference Materials (JSS) by using lithium carbonate as a standard sample. We determined that the carbon concentrations in four kinds of tellurite glass were 7 to 14 ppm.