An isotope harvesting beam blocker for the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory

Production, Collection, and Purification of 47Ca for the Generation of 47Sc through Isotope Harvesting at the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory

“…Offline experiments have demonstrated that increasing the flow through the ion-exchange resins can increase the overall collection rate. While there is a lower collection efficiency “per pass” of water, the high flow rate increases the frequency of water passing over the column . For future experiments in which the half-life of the radionuclide of interest is short, the flow rate through ion-exchange resins can be increased to expedite the collection process.…”

“…increases the frequency of water passing over the column. 29 For future experiments in which the half-life of the radionuclide of interest is short, the flow rate through ion-exchange resins can be increased to expedite the collection process.…”

“…This was a concern as a beam of energetic particles creates radiolysis products such as H + , OH − , HO • , H • , HO 2 ̇•, and H 2 O 2 as it deposits energy and stops in water. (More detail on radiolysis in the isotope harvesting system can be found in Domnanich et al 29 ) While most of these radiolysis products recombine rapidly, H 2 O 2 is long-lived and can cause oxidative damage to metal components exposed to the system water. In this water system, a few stainless steel components are in contact with the system water and could become a source of Fe, Cr, and Ni.…”

“…Several previous experiments have been performed to test the feasibility of this isotope production method at the NSCL. − These experiments range from collecting radioactive secondary beams in a water matrix to irradiating a prototype flowing-water target with a stable primary beam. This work has led to the development of a flowing-water target and extended water system for use in the beam blocker position at the NSCL (see Figure for a simplified schematic and Figure S1 in the Supporting Information for a more detailed schematic) . The water in this system serves as a cooling agent to remove heat from the target shell, as a target medium for isotope production where the accelerated beam reacts with the 16 O and 1 H nuclei in the water molecules, and as a transportation medium to move products from the target to collection components.…”

“…This work has led to the development of a flowing-water target and extended water system for use in the beam blocker position at the NSCL (see Figure 2 for a simplified schematic and Figure S1 in the Supporting Information for a more detailed schematic). 29 The water in this system serves as a cooling agent to remove heat from the target shell, as a target medium for isotope production where the accelerated beam reacts with the 16 O and 1 H nuclei in the water molecules, and as a transportation medium to move products from the target to collection components. Together, this method of production and collection of byproduct radionuclides at an accelerator facility is one example of isotope harvesting.…”