Separation of No-Carrier-Added Rhenium from Bulk Tantalum By Precipitation Technique

Abstract

No-carrier-added (NCA) rhenium isotopes have received ample attention for diverse practical applications. In the present study we have produced NCA 183Re isotope via α particle bombardment on a tantalum target. The classical precipitation method has been revisited for precipitating out the bulk tantalum matrix as hydrated tantalum hydroxide from solution using sodium carbonate and ammonia solution. In this simple single-step procedure of separation, NCA 183Re activity quantitatively retains in the supernatant phase along with negligible (∼1.2–1.3 ppm) chemical contamination of the bulk tantalum. This fast, cost effective separation methodology is an example of the green chemistry approach where minimum chemical consumption (no organic reagents was used) was reported including the target material which can be recovered in different chemical form for further use depending on the specific application of NCA rhenium.