Production of Pa-230 as a Source for Medical Radionuclides U-230 and Th-226 Including Isolation by Liquid-liquid Extraction

TL;DR

This study investigates the production of Pa-230 from thorium irradiation, evaluates its yield, and presents a liquid-liquid extraction method for isolating Pa-230, enabling simultaneous production of medical radionuclides U-230 and Th-226.

Contribution

It introduces a new method for producing and isolating Pa-230 from thorium targets, facilitating the simultaneous generation of medical radionuclides U-230 and Th-226.

Findings

Cross sections of Pa-230 formation were experimentally determined.

A liquid-liquid extraction method for Pa-230 isolation was developed.

The process enables simultaneous production of U-230 and Th-226.

Abstract

The experimental cross sections of Pa-230 formation in the reaction 232Th(p,3n)230Pa for the protons energy range of 140-35 MeV are determined and compared with literature data. The yield of U-230 and impurities of U-232 and U-233 depending on the energy of protons entering a thick thorium target are estimated. Liquid-liquid extraction with 1-octanol solution and addition of Al(III) as a masking agent followed by back-extraction with 7M HNO3+0.01M HF solution allows selective Pa isolation from a solution of irradiated Th and proposes simultaneous production of medical Ac-225 and Pa-230/U-230 from the same Th-target.