Comparison of NCS solubilization and a wet combustion technique for ¹⁴C measurement in dried biological tissues

Two techniques, NCS solubilization and wet combustion, were found to be equal in their ability to measure the ¹⁴C present in various dried rat tissues. Larger tissue samples with higher efficiencies were possible with wet combustion but it was inadequate for ring-labeled [¹⁴C]carbaryl; it also requires constant supervision by personnel in addition to being very time consuming. NCS solubilization is much more rapid and capable of quantitative recoveries of ring- and carbonyl-labeled carbaryl. NCS seems to be a more rapid alternative when sufficient ¹⁴C is present in tissue for analysis.