New Way to Check for Cobalt-60 in Carbon-14 Urea Pills

Scientists have found a new way to check for tiny amounts of cobalt-60 in carbon-14 urea pills. These pills are used in medical tests. The new method uses a technique called liquid scintillation counting. This technique measures the energy released by radioactive materials. The method focuses on the specific signals given off by cobalt-60. By looking at a particular part of the energy spectrum, scientists can spot cobalt-60 even when there's a lot of carbon-14 around. Carbon-14 is the main ingredient in these pills. The method also accounts for any changes in the sample that might affect the results.To make sure the method works, scientists added known amounts of cobalt-60 to the pills. The results matched what they expected. This shows the method is accurate. The method can detect cobalt-60 levels as low as 0. 0064%. This is well below the allowed limit of 0. 1% for impurities in these pills. This new method is a big deal because it makes it easier to check the purity of carbon-14 urea pills. It can be used regularly to ensure these pills are safe and effective for medical use.