Production of polonium from bismuth and purification using TBP resin and Sr resin

Ali Younes , Cyrille Alliot (1, 2) , Ali Jafar Sunga , Anne-Cécile Bonraisin (1) , Marcel Mokili (1, 3) , Steffen Happel , Aude Bombard , Ferid Haddad (1) , Gilles F Montavon (3)

1 Cyclotron ARRONAX
2 UN - Université de Nantes
3 SUBATECH - Laboratoire de physique subatomique et des technologies associées

A method for the production and purification of polonium from an irradiated bismuth target that minimizes processing time, cost, and generation of radioactive wastes, and increases recovery yield, is proposed. Production is done through two approaches: using a 37-MeV alpha particle beam to produce 210Po, and using a deuteron beam of 16-MeV to produce 210Po, 209Po and 208Po. Separation is performed using TBP-resin, and batch studies were performed to optimize conditions. Bismuth is separated with 7 M HCl, and polonium is successfully retained on the TBP resin. Polonium was recovered using 8 M HNO3 with a 99% yield.

Domaines: Physique [physics]

Ali Younes, Cyrille Alliot, Ali Jafar Sunga, Anne-Cécile Bonraisin, Marcel Mokili, et al.. Production of polonium from bismuth and purification using TBP resin and Sr resin. J.Radioanal.Nucl.Chem., 2020, 324 (2), pp.823-828. ⟨10.1007/s10967-020-07109-5⟩. ⟨hal-02557734⟩