Assessment of the increasing in 131-I production due to improved tellurium target in the WWR-c reactor core

Abstract

Currently, the problem of expanding the production of 131-I radionuclide for medical purposes is still relevant. The main consumer of this product in the European region is the MRRC of the Russian Ministry of Healthcare (Obninsk). 131-I production at the Obninsk Branch ofthe JSC “Karpov Institute of Physical Chemistry” is insufficient and requires additional supplies of 131-I from NIIAR (Dimitrovgrad). On the other hand, due to the fact that the half-life of 131-I is only eight days, its transportation over long distances is not feasible. Therefore, an increase in this isotope production at the Obninsk Branch of the Karpov Institute can bring significant economic benefits.At present a new design of the target for 131-I production has been developed. However, comparative assessment of standard and modified targets efficiency has not been performed so far.This paper presents some estimates of 131-I production with both targets which were irradiated in the WWR-c reactor. It is shown that a new target provides a significant (by a factor of three) increase in 131-I production, while specific concentration of 131-I in the initial target is slightly (about 20%) decreased.We have also investigated replacing aluminum alloy target shell with one made of stainless steel and found a 20% decrease in the 131-I yield.The comparison between the calculated 131-I yield and the actual 131-I yield testifies that the cumulated 131-I yield can be significantly increased.