Production of carrier free 99Mo by the nuclear recoil process and the use of some organic catchers

In this study, the possibilities of obtaining carrier-free or highly enriched 99Mo radioisotope, by the application of Szilard-Chalmers process and taking advantage from the catcher properties of some organic chemicals, have been investigated. The tablets prepared by mixing of molybdenum hexacarbonyl with oxalic acid, phtalic acid and succinic acid in varying concentrations were used as target materials for the thermal neutron irradiation. The irradiated tablets were dissolved in a suitable solvent and then filtered through a microfilter. The activity of 99Mo which was retained in the liquid phase, the percentage of inactive molybdenum and the enrichment factors were determined. Results have indicated that phtalic acid was not suitable for the purpose. The enrichment factors as high as 500 were obtained for mixtures with oxalic acid and succinic acid, and these mixtures were found to be suitable for the production of carrier-free 99Mo by a short irradiation process. (author)