Production and separation of ^186gRe from proton bombardment of ¹⁸⁶WC

A proof of concept study was undertaken where non-carrier added ^186gRe was produced from the cyclotron bombardment of ¹⁸⁶WC. ¹⁸⁶WC was carbo-thermally generated from a novel precursor synthesized from ¹⁸⁶WO₃, aqueous ammonia and hexamethyltetramine. The inherent high electrical and thermal conductivity of this material, coupled with its high melting point, made it an ideal candidate for proton bombardment for production of ¹⁸⁶Re. An18 μA irradiation for 3 h and processing via thermo-chromatography, ¹⁸⁶WC yielded 0.93 mCi of ^186gRe which corresponds to 89% of the calculated theoretical yields. The radiochemical purity of the desired ^186gRe species was found to be between 95 and 97% with small contaminants of ¹⁸⁶ReO₂. The radiochemistry utility of the product was investigated using S-benzoyl-MAG3, and 100% complexation was achieved with stability being maintained for 96 h. The re-oxidation of ¹⁸⁶WC back to¹⁸⁶WO₃ by oxygen in the thermo-chromatography method of processing ensured that the starting material was regenerated and recovered from the process in 94–98% yield