Preparation of 57Co point sources for the performance evaluation of nuclear imaging instruments.

This paper describes the utility of electrodeposition method to prepare (57)Co point sources. A description of the electrolytic cell, the process of (57)Co electrodeposition, encapsulation and quality control of the sealed (57)Co sources is presented. Sources containing ~3.7-4.81 MBq (0.10-0.13 mCi) of (57)Co were prepared, encapsulated in miniature titanium capsules and subjected to quality control tests to ensure compliance with regulatory requirements. The encapsulated (57)Co sources prepared by the reported procedure were found to be effective in routine performance evaluation of nuclear medicine instruments.