Measurements of the Fe³⁺ diffusion coefficient in Fricke Xylenol gel using optical density measurements

In Fricke dosimetry, optical density measurements are performed some time after dosimeter irradiation. Values of the diffusion coefficient of Fe³⁺ in Fricke Xylenol gel (FXG) are necessary for determining the spatial distribution of the absorbed dose from measurements of the optical density. Five sets of FXG dosimeters, kept at different constant temperatures, were exposed to collimated 6 MV photons. The optical density profile, proportional to the Fe³⁺ concentration, at the boundary between irradiated and non-irradiated parts of each dosimeter was measured periodically over a period of 60 h. By comparing the experimental data with a function that accounts for the unobserved initial concentration profile of Fe³⁺ in the FXG, we obtained diffusion coefficients 0.30±0.05, 0.40±0.05, 0.50±0.05, 0.60±0.05 and 0.80±0.05 mm²/h for the temperatures 283.0±0.5, 286.0±0.5, 289.0±0.5, 292.0±0.5, and 296.0±0.5 K, respectively. The activation energy of Fe³⁺ diffusion in the gel, 0.54±0.06 eV, was determined from the temperature dependence of the diffusion coefficients. - Highlights: • A new analytical method to determine diffusion coefficients of ions in gels is proposed. • The method is applied for measurements of the diffusion coefficients of Fe³⁺ ions in a Fricke gel dosimeter. • Activation energy of the Fe³⁺ ions in the gel was found to be 0.54 ±0.06 eV