Design of 166Dy/166Ho processed generator for the 166Ho Production of in Carrier-Free Form (CF)

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Nuclear fuel cycle Research School, Nuclear Science and Technology Research Institute, P.O.BOX: 14893-836, Tehran, Iran

2 Radiation Application Research School, Nuclear Science and Technology Research Institute, P.O.BOX: 14893-836, Tehran, Iran

10.22052/rsm.2025.255625.1081

Abstract

The radionuclide 166Ho has garnered attention in nuclear medicine due to its desirable characteristics, including a short half-life (26.8 hours), beta particle emission with an average energy of 665.7 keV, and suitable gamma emission energy (80.6% at 80 keV) for imaging, along with high production feasibility using a medium flux reactor. 166Ho can be obtained through two reactions: a direct reaction 165Ho(n,γ)166Ho and an indirect reaction 164Dy(2n,γ)166Dy(β−)164Dy(2n,γ)166Dy(β−). This radionuclide can also be utilized in two forms: in vivo and processed radionuclide generators. This research aims to produce 166Ho by neutron bombardment of dysprosium in the Tehran Research Reactor with medium flux, followed by radiochemical separation and ultimately quality control of the produced product to establish a 166Dy/166Ho process generator. In this study, in order to produce the radionuclide 166Ho, 166Dy was initially produced through the irradiation of enriched dysprosium-164 (98.2%) with thermal neutrons in the Tehran Research Reactor. Subsequently, for separation, it was loaded into a column filled with Ln resin containing the extractant 2-ethylhexyl 2-ethylhexyl phosphonic acid (HEH[EHP]) using an extraction chromatography method. The radionuclide 166Ho was eluted from the column in a three-step process. The optimal elution time for the 166Dy/166Ho generator was 2.5 days. The average separation yield achieved using this method was 83%. The radionuclide purity of the produced 166Ho sample was determined using analysis by a germanium semiconductor detector. The results indicated that the final product 166Ho has a radionuclide purity of over 99%, with an activity 40.95 mCi and a specific activity of 100 Ci/mg, and the dysprosium leakage in the final sample was negligible (less than 0.2 µCi per millicurie of 166Ho).

Keywords

References

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