Conceptual design of direct 99mTc production facility at the high temperature engineering test reactor

Abstract

This study proposed a conceptual design of direct 99mTc production facility from a natural MoO3 target at the high temperature engineering test reactor (HTTR). 99mTc is produced by a beta decay of 99Mo, which is formed via the 98Mo(n,γ)99Mo reaction. 99mTc is then extracted from the MoO3 target by sublimation method to take advantage of the high temperature of the HTTR core. The foremost advantage of this concept is that the MoO3 target is heated up inside the reactor without pulling out for external electric heating, and as a result, 99mTc could be extracted directly during irradiation. The daily production rate of 99mTc was estimated to about 9.5 × 105 MBq/day with 1 kg MoO3 target, accounting for 60% daily demand in Japan. With large space available for irradiation purpose, the size of MoO3 target could be increased, and therefore the HTTR has the capability to supply enough amount of 99mTc for daily demand in Japan.