Acquisition of a Liquid Scintillation Spectrometer for Undergraduate Education

放射性同位素是生化和医学研究的重要工具，也是环境监测和放射化学研究的重要工具。这个项目的重点是将目前生物化学、环境科学和放射化学的研究技术应用到田纳西理工大学化学专业本科生的实验室体验中。液体闪烁光谱分析是微弱贝塔辐射体的主要计数技术，随着当前仪器的进步，对阿尔法辐射体的分析正变得越来越普遍。这个项目的目标是：1)为学生提供样品制备和分析阿尔法和微弱的贝塔发射体的经验；2)让学生了解该系统的内部工作原理，使该仪器不仅仅是“一个产生数字的黑匣子”；以及3)为学生提供一个工具来解决放射化学和生物化学中的高级问题。适应的例子是小分子与蛋白质结合的测量(Boles，《生物化学》，1990和Boles，J.Biol。使用新的吸收材料测定饮用水中的放射性核素(Smith，Radiochimica Acta，1993)，以及在放射性药物中加入99Tc(Deutsch，J.Nucl.仪器表现出高灵敏度和低本底，通过使用时间分辨脉冲形状分析来分离阿尔法和贝塔计数，允许观察阿尔法和贝塔脉冲形状之间的差异，并使用实时光谱显示根据能谱执行同位素鉴定。该项目使本科生与专业学校、研究生、工业岗位或政府实验室之间建立了更有效的联系，在这些地方，需要了解液体闪烁光谱学的理论、操作特点和应用。

Radioisotopes are important tools in biochemical and medical research, as well as in environmental monitoring and radiochemical research. This project focuses on the adaptation of current research techniques in biochemistry, environmental science, and radiochemistry into the undergraduate laboratory experience of chemistry students at Tennessee Technological University. Liquid scintillation spectrometry is the primary counting technique for weak beta emitters and, with advances in current instrumentation, the analysis of alpha emitters is becoming common. The objectives of this project are: 1) providing the students with experience in sample preparation and analysis of alpha and weak beta emitters; 2) providing students with an appreciation of the internal workings of the system so that the instrument becomes more than "a black box that produces a number;" and 3) furnishing the students with a tool to attack advanced problems in radiochemistry and biochemistry. Examples of adaptations are the measurement of the binding of small molecules to proteins (Boles, Biochemistry, 1990 and Boles, J. Biol. Chem., 1992), the determination of radionuclides in drinking water using new absorbent materials (Smith, Radiochimica Acta, 1993), and the incorporation of 99Tc into radiopharmaceuticals (Deutsch, J. Nucl. Med, 1987).The instrument exhibits high sensitivity and low background, separates alpha and beta counts through the use of time-resolved pulse shape analysis, allows the observation of the differences between alpha and beta pulse shapes, and performs isotopic identification based on the energy spectra with the use of live spectral display. This project results in a more effective linkage between undergraduate students and professional schools, graduate studies, industrial positions, or government laboratories, where an understanding of the theory, operating characteristics, and applications of liquid scintillation spectroscopy is needed.