82Sr production from metallic Rb targets and development of an 82Rb generator system

A complete procedure for producing 82Sr/Rb generators is described. 82Sr was produced by bombarding metallic rubidium targets with 60 MeV protons with beam currents as high as 80 μA. The experimentally determined cross section for a thick target (61-48 MeV) agrees with the literature value of 100 mb. Production rates of about 0.2 mCi/μA-h with a 1.8 g/cm2 target were achieved. The 82Sr was separated from the target by dissolving the rubidium metal in n-butanol then separating the strontium isotopes on a Chelex-100 column. A SnO2 generator system was built from readily available components. Factors affecting generator design, performance and limitations included SnO2 particle size, column length and eluant flow-rate. (author)