en Radiation Biology Radiation Biology تحقيق بديع Original Research <div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:10pt"><span style="text-justify:newspaper"><span style="text-kashida-space:50%"><span style="line-height:119%"><span style="font-family:Calibri"><span style="color:black"><span lang="en-US" style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri"><span style="color:#1f497d"><span style="font-style:italic"><span style="font-weight:bold"><span style="language:en-US">Background</span></span></span></span></span></span><span lang="en-US" style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri"><span style="color:#1f497d"><span style="font-weight:bold"><span style="language:en-US">:</span></span></span></span></span> <span lang="en-US" style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri"><span style="language:en-US">During the analysis of certain natural radionuclides in plant samples using gamma spectroscopy, the presence of </span></span></span><span lang="en-US" style="font-size:5.9939pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri"><span style="language:en-US">⁴⁰</span></span></span><span lang="en-US" style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri"><span style="language:en-US">K in the sample causes the overlap of its Compton region with the full energy peaks of </span></span></span><span lang="en-US" style="font-size:5.9939pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri"><span style="language:en-US">²³⁸</span></span></span><span lang="en-US" style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri"><span style="language:en-US">U, </span></span></span><span lang="en-US" style="font-size:5.9939pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri"><span style="language:en-US">²³²</span></span></span><span lang="en-US" style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri"><span style="language:en-US">Th, and their daughter. Therefore, it is necessary to remove potassium before the measurement to enhance analytical accuracy. </span></span></span><span lang="en-US" style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri"><span style="color:#1f497d"><span style="font-style:italic"><span style="font-weight:bold"><span style="language:en-US">Materials and Methods:</span></span></span></span></span></span><span lang="en-US" style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri"><span style="language:en-US"> Five different plant samples were used to validate the method. For each sample, the analysis was performed using two separation methods (original and K-separation), and both were measured with the gamma detector. Comparison of the results achieved using the two methods with regard to spectrum, peak-to-total ratio, obtained activity, and minimum detectable activity (MDA) indicated that the proposed method yielded improved results. </span></span></span><span lang="en-US" style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri"><span style="color:#1f497d"><span style="font-style:italic"><span style="font-weight:bold"><span style="language:en-US">Results: </span></span></span></span></span></span><span lang="en-US" style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri"><span style="language:en-US">The separation procedure removed most of potassium present in the samples. The peak-to-total of energy peaks < 1000 keV increased significantly. The spectrum after K-separation exhibited a lower continuum under the peaks, and the shapes of the peaks were more identifiable. Comparison of MDA values derived before and after the application of K-separation showed an improvement in analytical accuracy. </span></span></span><span lang="en-US" style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri"><span style="color:#1f497d"><span style="font-style:italic"><span style="font-weight:bold"><span style="language:en-US">Conclusion: </span></span></span></span></span></span><span lang="en-US" style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:Calibri"><span style="language:en-US">The removal of potassium from plant samples is effective in decreasing the MDA of the spectroscopy by reducing the Compton continuum of the 40K isotope under the energy peaks of interest. Therefore, the application of this method can augment the measurement possibilities for samples with low radioactivity.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div> Chemical separation, Compton continuum, minimum detection activity, gamma spectrum 565 572 http://ijrr.com/browse.php?a_code=A-10-1-1212&slc_lang=en&sid=1 T.Y.H. Huynh 7900319475328460027898 7900319475328460027898 No Nuclear Technique Laboratory, University of Science, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam H.N.T. Truong 7900319475328460027899 7900319475328460027899 No Nuclear Technique Laboratory, University of Science, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam H.L. Trinh 7900319475328460027900 7900319475328460027900 No Vietnam National University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam V.T. Nguyen nvthang@hcmus.edu.vn 7900319475328460027901 7900319475328460027901 Yes Nuclear Technique Laboratory, University of Science, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam C.H. Le 7900319475328460027902 7900319475328460027902 No Nuclear Technique Laboratory, University of Science, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam