Radioactive Isotope Production

Project

Domestic radioisotope production is crucial for the success of various industries including petroleum production, nuclear medicine, and deep space exploration.  The Department of Energy has made significant investment to establish domestic radioisotope production infrastructure to meet the demands of this ever increasing market.

The Thermal Hydraulics and Irradiation Engineering Group (THIEG), among others at ORNL, are at the forefront of this effort.  Irradiation capsules are designed by the THIEG to produce radioisotopes in the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) and Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) at ORNL and INL respectively.  Production facilities are also implemented to fabricate these capsules to meet the demand for radioisotopes.

Current activities include production of ORNL ²³⁸Pu, High Specific Activity (HSA) ⁶⁰Co, ²²⁷Ac for nuclear medicine application, and ⁷⁵Se for gamma radiography. Further exploits include development of irradiation programs to resume the domestic production of ¹⁹²Ir and ⁹⁹Mo.

Benefits

There are virtually no domestic sources of bulk radioisotopes.  Furthermore, production and availability uncertainties stemming from factors such as the closure of the Canadian NRU reactor and global political instability warrants the US to establish a domestic radioisotope production cycle.  The THIEG, and ORNL as a whole, is well positioned to provide key support in the areas of irradiation vehicle production and design enable radioisotope production at the HFIR, ATR, and other potential neutron sources.

Sponsors

DOE Office of Science

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Principal Investigator

Richard Howard