Optimized ion-chromatographic method for determining 226Ra in aerosols using 223Ra as a tracer

This study presents an ion-chromatographic method for determining 226 Ra in aerosol samples using 223 Ra as a radiochemical yield tracer. A purified 227 Ac– 223 Ra tracer solution was prepared from certified uranium–radium equilibrium material and applied to optimize single-column chromatographic separation of radium on AG 50W resin with CyDTA eluents. The procedure enables accurate quantification of trace 226 Ra in aerosol filters with low minimum detectable activity and reliable chemical recoveries. For spiked samples containing 226 Ra, recoveries ranged from about 50%–80% with relative deviations below 5%, and an MDA of approximately 2 mBq was achieved for 24 h counting at the 95% confidence level. The optimized separation scheme is suitable for routine environmental monitoring of NORM-bearing aerosols and can also serve as a pre-concentration and purification step prior to ICP-MS-based 226 Ra analysis.