Phosphorus-32 is a radioisotope of the chemical element phosphorus, which has 17 neutrons in the atomic nucleus in addition to the element-specific 15 protons, resulting in a mass number of 32.
See also: list of Phosphorus isotopes.
Phosphorus-32 is a pure beta emitter: the radioactive β-decay into the ground state of the stable isotope Sulfur-32 leads to the 100% emission of electrons e- with an energy of 0.69503(10) MeV; the remaining part of the total energy is carried by electron antineutrinos ve (1.016986(20) MeV).
Half-life T½ = 14.268(5) d respectively 1.2327552 × 106 seconds s.
Decay mode | Daughter | Probability | Decay energy | γ energy (intensity) |
---|---|---|---|---|
β- | 32S | 100 % | 1.71066(4) MeV |
Direct parent isotope is: 32Si.
Phosphorus-32 is produced synthetically by irradiating sulfur-32 with moderately fast neutrons; overall, the following nuclear reactions are common for 32 production:
The synthesis takes place in nuclear reactors.
Phosphorus-32 occurs naturally on Earth in small but detectable trace amounts. The radioisotope is formed - alongside Phosphorus-33; both are occasionally referred to individually, but also in combination as radiophosphorus - by the effect of cosmic radiation (spallation) on argon atoms - mainly in the upper troposphere and to a lesser extent in the lower stratosphere. 32P rapidly oxidizes to the phosphate 32PO43-, which binds to aerosols and reaches the ocean and Earth´s surface with precipitation [2].
The radioactive isotope phosphorus-32 plays a role in medicine and biochemical research. As a medical radionuclide, it can be used to detect malignant tumors, since suitable preparations labeled with 32P accumulate more strongly in cancer cells than in healthy cells. Medicines listed by the WHO are:
- Phosphorous (32P) chromicphosphate colloid (anti-inflammatory) and
Z | Isotone N = 17 | Isobar A = 32 |
---|---|---|
7 | 24N | |
8 | 25O | |
9 | 26F | |
10 | 27Ne | 32Ne |
11 | 28Na | 32Na |
12 | 29Mg | 32Mg |
13 | 30Al | 32Al |
14 | 31Si | 32Si |
15 | 32P | 32P |
16 | 33S | 32S |
17 | 34Cl | 32Cl |
18 | 35Ar | 32Ar |
19 | 36K | 32K |
20 | 37Ca | |
21 | 38Sc | |
22 | 39Ti | |
23 | 40V | |
24 | 41Cr | |
25 | 42Mn |
[1] - K. V. Vimalnath, Priyalata Shetty, A. Rajeswari et al.:
Reactor production of 32P for medical applications: an assessment of 32S(n,p)32P and 31P(n,γ)32P methods.
In: Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry, 301, (2014), DOI 10.1007/s10967-014-3115-0.
[2] - Michael Schubert, Mang Lin, Jordan F. Clark et al.:
Short-lived natural radionuclides as tracers in hydrogeological studies - A review.
In: Science of The Total Environment, 920, 170800, (2024), DOI 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.170800.
Last update: 2024-08-23
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