-MoO whiskers in Mo/Tc radioisotope production and Mo/Tc extraction using hot atoms

Ngo, M. C.*; Fujita, Yoshitaka; Suzuki, Tatsuya*; Do, T. M. D.*; Seki, Misaki; Nakayama, Tadachika*; Niihara, Koichi*; Suematsu, Hisayuki*

Inorganic Chemistry, 62(32), p.13140 - 13147, 2023/08

https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.inorgchem.3c02125

Technetium-99m (Tc) is one of the most important radioisotopes for diagnostic radio-imaging applications. Tc is a daughter product of the Mo isotope. There are two methods used to produce Mo/Tc: the nuclear fission (n,f) and the neutron capture (n,) methods. Between them, the (n,f) method is the main route, used for approximately 90% of the world's production. However, the (n,f) method faces numerous problems, including the use of highly enriched uranium, the release of highly radioactive waste, and nonproliferation problems. Therefore, the (n,) method is being developed as a future replacement for the (n,f) method. In this work, -MoO whiskers prepared by the thermal evaporation method and -MoO particles were irradiated in a nuclear reactor to produce Mo/Tc via neutron capture. The irradiated targets were dispersed into water to extract the Mo/Tc. As a result, -MoO whisker yielded higher Mo extraction rate than that from -MoO. In addition, by comparing the dissolved Mo concentrations in water, we clarified a prominent hot-atom of -MoO whiskers. This research is the first demonstration of -MoO being used as an irradiation target in the neutron capture method. On the basis of the results, -MoO is considered a promising irradiation target for producing Mo/Tc by neutron capture and using water for the radioisotope extraction process in the future.

Radiochemical research for the advancement of Mo/Tc generator by (n, ) method, 4

Fujita, Yoshitaka; Seki, Misaki; Ngo, M. C.*; Do, T. M. D.*; Hu, X.*; Yang, Y.*; Takeuchi, Tomoaki; Nakano, Hiroko; Fujihara, Yasuyuki*; Yoshinaga, Hisao*; et al.

KURNS Progress Report 2021, P. 118, 2022/07

https://www.rri.kyoto-u.ac.jp/PUB/report/PR/ProgRep2021/ProgressReport2021_online.pdf#page=134

no abstracts in English

Dynamic properties on Mo adsorption and Tc elution with alumina columns

Fujita, Yoshitaka; Seki, Misaki; Sano, Tadafumi*; Fujihara, Yasuyuki*; Suzuki, Tatsuya*; Yoshinaga, Hisao*; Hori, Junichi*; Suematsu, Hisayuki*; Tsuchiya, Kunihiko

Journal of Physics; Conference Series, 2155, p.012018_1 - 012018_6, 2022/01

https://doi.org/10.1088/1742-6596/2155/1/012018

Technetium-99m (Tc), the daughter nuclide of Molybdenum-99 (Mo), is the most commonly used radioisotope in radiopharmaceuticals. The research and development (R&D) for the production of Mo by the neutron activation method ((n, ) method) has been carried out from viewpoints of no-proliferation and nuclear security, etc. Since the specific activity of Mo produced by the (n, ) method is extremely low, developing AlO with a large Mo adsorption capacity is necessary to adapt (n, )Mo to the generator. In this study, three kinds of AlO specimens with different raw materials were prepared and compared their adaptability to generators by static and dynamic adsorption. MoO pellet pieces (1.5g) were irradiated with 5 MW for 20 min in the Kyoto University Research Reactor (KUR). Irradiated MoO pellet pieces were dissolved in 6M-NaOH aq. In dynamic adsorption, 1 g of AlO was filled into a PFA tube (1.59 mm). The Mo adsorption capacity of AlO specimens under dynamic condition was slightly reduced compared to that under static condition. The Tc elution rate was about 100% at 1.5 mL of milking in dynamic adsorption, while it was around 56-87% in static adsorption. The Mo/Tc ratio of dynamic condition was greatly reduced compared to that of static condition. Therefore, the Tc elution property is greatly affected by the method of adsorbing Mo, e.g., the column shape, the linear flow rate, etc.

Research and examination of seismic safety evaluation and function maintenance for important equipment in nuclear facilities

Furuya, Osamu*; Fujita, Satoshi*; Muta, Hitoshi*; Otori, Yasuki*; Itoi, Tatsuya*; Okamura, Shigeki*; Minagawa, Keisuke*; Nakamura, Izumi*; Fujimoto, Shigeru*; Otani, Akihito*; et al.

Proceedings of ASME 2021 Pressure Vessels and Piping Conference (PVP 2021) (Internet), 6 Pages, 2021/07

Since the Fukushima accident, with the higher safety requirements of nuclear facilities in Japan, suppliers, manufacturers and academic societies have been actively considering the reconstruction of the safety of nuclear facilities from various perspectives. The Nuclear Regulation Authority has formulated new regulatory standards and is in operation. The new regulatory standards are based on defense in depth, and have significantly raised the levels of natural hazards and have requested to strengthen the countermeasures from the perspective of preventing the simultaneous loss of safety functions due to common factors. Facilities for dealing with specific serious accidents are required to have robustness to ensure functions against earthquakes that exceed the design standards to a certain extent. In addition, since the probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) and the safety margin evaluation are performed to include the range beyond the design assumption in the safety improvement evaluation, it is very important to extent the special knowledge in the strength of important equipment for seismic safety. This paper summarizes the research and examination results of specialized knowledge on the concept of maintaining the functions of important seismic facilities and the damage index to be considered by severe earthquakes. In the other paper, the study on reliability of seismic capacity analysis for important equipment in nuclear facilities will be reported.

Effect on Mo-adsorption/Tc-elution properties of alumina with different surface structures

Fujita, Yoshitaka; Seki, Misaki; Sano, Tadafumi*; Fujihara, Yasuyuki*; Kitagawa, Tomoya*; Matsukura, Minoru*; Hori, Junichi*; Suzuki, Tatsuya*; Tsuchiya, Kunihiko

Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry, 327(3), p.1355 - 1363, 2021/03

AA2020-0805.pdf:0.77MB

https://doi.org/10.1007/s10967-021-07616-z

We prepared three types of AlO with different surface structures and investigated Mo-adsorption/Tc-elution properties using [Mo]MoO that was irradiated in the Kyoto University Research Reactor. AlO adsorbed [Mo]molybdate ions in solutions at different pH; the lower was the pH, the higher was the Mo-adsorption capacity of AlO. The Tc-elution properties of molybdate ion adsorbed AlO were elucidated by flowing saline. Consequently, it was suggested that Mo-adsorption/desorption properties are affected by the specific surface of AlO and Tc-elution properties are affected by the crystal structure of AlO.

Experimental study of Gamow-Teller transitions via the high-energy-resolution O(He,)F reaction; Identification of the low-energy "super" -Gamow-Teller state

Fujita, Hirohiko*; Fujita, Yoshitaka*; Utsuno, Yutaka; Yoshida, Kenichi*; Adachi, Tatsuya*; Algora, A.*; Csatls, M.*; Deaven, J. M.*; Estevez-Aguado, E.*; Guess, C. J.*; et al.

Physical Review C, 100(3), p.034618_1 - 034618_13, 2019/09

AA2019-0318.pdf:1.1MB

https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevC.100.034618

no abstracts in English

Detailed study of the structure of the low-energy magnetic excitations in overdoped LaSrCuO

Ikeuchi, Kazuhiko*; Kikuchi, Tatsuya*; Nakajima, Kenji; Kajimoto, Ryoichi; Wakimoto, Shuichi; Fujita, Masaki*

Physica B; Condensed Matter, 536, p.717 - 719, 2018/05

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physb.2017.11.022

To examine the detailed structure of low-energy magnetic excitations in a high-transition-temperature superconducting cuprate with heavily hole-doping, we performed inelastic neutron scattering experiments on LaSrCuO. We observed clear dispersion relations of the previously reported incommensurate (IC) magnetic correlations at = (0.5 , 0.5)/(0.5, 0.5 ). In addition, we show the emergence of continuum magnetic excitations with a ring shape centered at point in a constant energy spectrum at = 50 K. The radius of the ring ( = 0.109) is smaller than the incommensurability ( = 0.118). This suggests that the origin of the ring-like excitations is different from that of the IC magnetic correlations, and the low-energy magnetic excitations of the LaSrCuO system are inherently composed of these two kinds of excitations.

Development of grouting technologies for geological disposal of high level waste in Japan, 1; Preliminary study for in-situ grout injection test in crystalline rock mass test site

Nakanishi, Tatsuro; Fujita, Tomoo; Tsuda, Hidenori; Tanaka, Tatsuya*; Uyama, Masao*; Onishi, Yuzo*

Dai-41-Kai Gamban Rikigaku Ni Kansuru Shimpojiumu Koenshu (CD-ROM), p.71 - 76, 2012/01

Grouting technology is fundamental to the safe and efficient construction of underground facilities for the geological disposal of high level waste in Japan. The Japan Atomic Energy Agency has been developing grouting materials and technologies with consideration to the long term chemical interactions between the grout material and the natural barrier rock mass. An in-situ grout injection test has been carried out at the Grimsel Test Site to optimize grouting design.

Advanced-ORIENT cycle, its scientific progress and prospect for engineering feasibility

Koyama, Shinichi; Yamagishi, Isao; Suzuki, Tatsuya*; Ozawa, Masaki*; Fujita, Reiko*; Okada, Ken*; Tatenuma, Katsuyoshi*; Mimura, Hitoshi*; Fujii, Yasuhiko

Proceedings of International Conference on Toward and Over the Fukushima Daiichi Accident (GLOBAL 2011) (CD-ROM), 8 Pages, 2011/12

Effective separation of MA and LLFP, transmutation and utilization were the main directions of Advanced OREINT Cycle project. Study for each integrant technology was concluded as first trial of the project. TPR enabled to separate MA/Ln and then Am/Cm precisely from spent fuel in HCl and HNO media. CEE method could separate the light PGM and Tc by HCl media. Recovery of Cs from simulated HLLW coul be achieved more than 90 %. In addition, the perspective for next phase was proposed.

Development of function-graded proton exchange membrane for PEFC using heavy ion beam irradiation

Shiraki, Fumiya*; Yoshikawa, Taeko*; Oshima, Akihiro*; Oshima, Yuji*; Takasawa, Yuya*; Fukutake, Naoyuki*; Oyama, Tomoko*; Urakawa, Tatsuya*; Fujita, Hajime*; Takahashi, Tomohiro*; et al.

Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research B, 269(15), p.1777 - 1781, 2011/08

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nimb.2011.04.117

The graded energy deposition of heavy ion beam irradiation to polymeric materials was utilized to synthesize a novel proton exchange membrane (PEM) with the graded density of sulfonic acid groups toward the thickness direction. Stacked Poly(tetrafluoroethylene-co-hexafluoropropylene) (FEP) films were irradiated by Xe ion beam with the energy of 6 MeV/u under a vacuum condition. Irradiated films were grafted with styrene monomer and then sulfonated. The membrane electrode assembly (MEA) fabricated by the function graded PEM showed improved fuel cell performance in terms of voltage stability. It was expected that the function-graded PEM could control the graded concentration of sulfonic acid groups in PEM.