Novel porous crosslinked plastic scintillation microspheres (p-CPSm) for radioactivity detection

Abstract Purpose The use of plastic scintillators combined with selective extractants (PSresin) has been extensively developed in recent years, enabling the simultaneous separation and detection of different radionuclides on a single support. However, these materials have some limitations, such as low specific surface areas, leaching of extractants weakly adhered and degradation in presence of non-polar organic solvents, as they are made of linear polymers. Methods To address these challenges, this study introduces novel materials composed of a crosslinked structure and porosity using organic solvents (dichloromethane, toluene, heptane and hexane). Results The results show that the type and amount of solvent used during synthesis significantly influence the scintillation and morphological properties of these supports. Furthermore, porous PSresins demonstrate the ability to immobilize higher amounts of extractants compared to the linear polymer structures, but keeping adequate scintillation properties for radionuclide detection. Conclusion Porous scintillation microspheres can be successfully prepared with acceptable scintillation capabilities. These new materials enable an immobilization of higher amounts of selective extractants, resulting in significantly enhanced extraction capacities.