Development of Inorganic Adsorbents as Matrices of Generators for Therapeutic Radionuclides

The aims of the study were (i) to prepare 188W/188Re generators based on 188W-tungstates and hydroxyapatite to evaluate their feasibility and (ii) to determine the sorption properties of alumina to ascertain the optimal conditions for fabrication of alumina based 188W/188Re generators. Titanium and zirconium 188W-tungstate were synthesized using 188W-tungstate solutions at four different pH values and were then used to prepare 188W/188Re generators. The sorption behaviour of tungsten and rhenium on hydroxyapatite and alumina in a NaCl medium was evaluated based on results of batch experiments. Three parameters were assessed: NaCl solution pH, alumina particle size and sorption capacity. The results demonstrate that 188Re is not adsorbed, whereas 188W is strongly adsorbed in NaCl on both adsorbents. Hydroxyapatite and alumina 188W/188Re generator systems were constructed and eluted in NaCl solutions. The performance of the titanium and zirconium 188W-tungstate, hydroxyapatite and alumina based 188W/188Re generators was evaluated. (author)