IAEA Presentation on the CRP at the 2008 RERTR conference

Fostering New Sources of Mo-99

for International Nuclear Medicine Needs

IAEA CRP on Mo-99 Production Using LEU or Neutron Activation

Ira N. Goldman, Natesan Ramamoorthy, Pablo Adelfang

International Atomic Energy Agency

2008 RERTR International Meeting

October 5 - 9, 2008

Washington, DC

RERTR 2008IAEA Mo-99 CRP

Outline

• Background and History

• Participants

• Recent Activities and Progress

• Training/Technical Support and Procurements

• Near-Term Plans

• Conclusion


Background

• 99mTc reigns as the most used diagnostic tracer; 75-80% of all imaging >25 million studies/year

• Weekly 99Mo requirements: ~450000 GBq (12000Ci, ‘6-day curies’) at reference time (~50% for USA). Well over 95% of 99Mo is produced using HEU targets (~50 kg)

• Efforts to shift production of medical isotopes away from use of HEU (through RERTR, DOE/USA)

• Some Member States (MS) of IAEA are seeking to become small scale, indigenous producers of 99Mo

• Need to encourage and provide access to LEU technology or neutron activation (NA) methods as HEU is phased out from commercial use


Objectives

• Assist member states with adoption of LEU Cintichem (foil targets) or neutron activation (gel moly) technology.

• Further demonstrate efficacy of LEU production of 99Mo• Advance intnl coopn for non-proliferation and nuclear

security objectives, promote sustainable development.• Foster capacity building for local/regional self-

sufficiency to meet 99Mo needs• Not Aimed: Engaging the large-scale industrial

producers (but some are participating/contributing)

www.iaea.org/OurWork/ST/NE/NEFW/nfcms_researchreactors_Mo99.html


History

• November 2004 - Project Design Consultancy, Vienna • February 2005 - CRP approved• May 2005 - Potential Mo-99 Producer’s Workshop, Buenos

Aires, Argentina• December 2005 – 1st RCM, Vienna, Austria• March 2006 – Foil Targets Workshop, Serpong, Indonesia• November 2006 - Workshop on Operational Aspects of Mo-

99 Production, Vienna, Austria• April 2007 – 2nd RCM, Bucharest and Pitesti, Romania• 2007-2008 – Various training activities in Argentina, Chile,

India, and Indonesia; equipment procurement, process installation, testing

• Oct 13-16, 2008: 3rd RCM, MURR, Columbia, Mo, USA

RERTR 2008Mo-99 CRP

Participants

• Contract Holders:

-Chile/CCHEN - LEU foil targets fission moly-Egypt/EAEA – fission moly and gel generators-Kazakhstan/INP - gel moly portable generators-Libya/DRETC - LEU foil targets fission moly-Pakistan/PINSTECH - LEU foil plate targets fission moly-Romania/IFIN-HH Magurele - gel moly-Romania/INR Pitesti - LEU foil targets fission moly

RERTR 2008Mo-99 CRP

Participants

• Agreement Holders:

-Argentina/CNEA-India/BARC-BRIT-Indonesia/BATAN-Korea/KAERI-Poland/POLATOM-US/ANL-US/MURR


Recent Progress/Activities

• KAERI LEU foils sent to Poland, U.S. (ANL and MURR), October 2007• Further calculation and analytical work (Chile, Egypt, Libya, Pakistan)• Annular foil target assembly and testing (Chile, Romania2)• R&D LEU foil plate target and LEU electro-deposition (Pakistan)• Hot cell modifications and preparations (Chile – new manipulators;

Libya, Romania2, MURR)• Development of processing procedures, cold run (Chile, MURR,

Romania2)• Development of QA procedures (Chile, MURR, Romania2)• Substantial intra-participant training and HR development (next slide)• Gel moly development and implementation (Kazakhstan, Romania1)


Fostering Provision of Materials, Information Exchange

• Aluminium tubing shipped from ANL (03/06)• KAERI supply of test foils with IAEA facilitation for transfers.

LEU foils delivered to 4-5 participants (2007)• Glassware procured by IAEA with DOE funding; received

by late 2006/early 2007• ANSTO safety documentation distributed (early 2007)• MURR assistance in performing and evaluating thermal

hydraulics calculations• BRIT/BARC assistance with gel generator know-how• CRP website increasingly important tool with several

technical reports posted


Training/Technical Assistance and Procurements

• BRIT (India), February 2008, 1 Kazakhstan SV re: portable gel moly generator technology

• BATAN, March 2008 - 1 Chilean, 2 Libyan Fellows LEU ingot rolling process, foil target fabrication, waste treatment

• CNEA, June 2008 - 1 Libyan SV, QC for Mo-99 production• CCHEN, August 2008 - 1 Poland SV, LEU annular target

fabrication equipment design, assembly, welding (2 Libyans unable to reach Chile)

• Additional aluminum tubes procured by ANL for Chile and Poland

• Bids for Cintichem laboratory equipment and supplies for Libya; evaluation underway

RERTR 2008: IAEA Mo-99 CRP Progress Status and Perspectives

• Several groups in the CRP will advance to demonstrating 99Mo production using LEU

• Objective findings on all related aspects: feasibility to adaptability – scope, requirements

• Possible role of a few groups significant: (i) MURR, USA to establish compliance of LEU moly for generator use; (ii) 4 groups already handling generator production, thus well placed to use local LEU moly

• 2 other groups will show the scale of applicability of gel moly system


Future Activities

• 3rd RCM, 13-16 October, MURR• Provision of fabricated annular targets to Libya • 1 Poland Fellowship to MURR (1 month, Oct-Nov. 2008)• Extension of CRP for an additional two years• Irradiation of LEU targets and processing of hot targets• Irradiation of Mo oxide and preparation of ‘moly Mo-99 gel

powder for gel column generators• Compare, assess, and interpret results, provide follow-up,

and suggest adaptive changes • Review compliance with specifications and purity

requirements• Document/publish results


Other Activities

• Participated in Global Initiative (GI) for Preventing Proliferation Workshop on Mo-99 Production, Sydney, December 2007

• Maintain contact/input to NAS Mo-99 Study• Participated in DOE Isotopes Workshop, August 2008• Respond to many inquiries regarding research reactors and

Mo-99 production.• Encouraging RR networking, collaboration for isotope

production (and other activities) under IAEA Research Reactor Coalitions Initiative.

Sydney Workshop on theProduction of 99Mo using LEU

• GICNT: NNSA, DOE/USA and ANSTO; Sydney Dec 2-5, 2007; 50 participants from 14 countries

• IAEA invited to, (I) join Executive Committee; (ii) present a talk; (iii) chair a Session

• Practically all stakeholders sat together!

• Workshop report: key issues, challenges (technical; economic; political) and path forward

• Formal report to GI plenary in summer 2008


Other influencing events

• Vulnerability of Mo-99 supplies: Fall 2007 Canadian event; Summer 2008 European scenario

• May 2008: Closure of MAPLE reactor project announced• NAS Mo-99 Study complete; Report awaited• Follow-up on DOE Isotopes Workshop held in August 2008• Enquiries regarding the IAEA help: research reactor

availability and Mo-99 production• Progress in additional production plans and identifying

potential possibilities


Conclusion

• Many CRP participants continue to make excellent progress.• Increasing technology transfer between the contract holders. • Participants are developing physical and human resource infrastructure

to carry out successful trial irradiation and processing.• Recent events have demonstrated the fragility of the global Mo-99

supply infrastructure. • Medium term outlook for global Mo-99 supply highly uncertain due to

aging isotope production reactors, lack of planned replacements.• Several participants have significant facilities that could be utilized in

addressing global Mo-99 requirements.• Partnerships, joint ventures, or other commercial arrangements needed

to further develop such potential alternative producers.• IAEA prepared to provide a forum to bring together all

stakeholders for an objective analysis of requirements and to consider options for path forward.

Acknowledgements

• DOE/NNSA – primary project funding

• NTI: project management finances

• Government of Norway – financial support

• ANSTO, KAERI, CERCA: in-kind support

Thank you all for your [email protected]

Technology

IAEA Presentation on the CRP at the 2008 RERTR conference