Possibilities for reorientation of activity in Heavy Water Plants

In Romania heavy water is produced by H2O-H2S chemical exchange (GS process) and by water distillation, in two lines working simultaneously. The distillation plants have high separation capacity, a distillation line being able to concentrate water from two GS lines. The paper presents data regarding possibilities to use one distillation line for oxygen - 18 production, as pre-concentrates or finite products. A simulation program was used to calculate the oxygen - 18 concentration in the heavy water produced, maximum 18 O concentration of pre-concentrate obtained on distillation line and the separation cascade sizes to obtain 95% 18 O, with first and second stage having the same sizes like the distillation plant from the Romanian heavy water factory. Oxygen-18 separation factor is much lower than deuterium separation factor. For this reason, oxygen-18 is a very expensive product. (authors)