Process and apparatus for the production of BI-213 cations

A process for producing substantially impurity-free Bi-213 cations comprising the steps of:

• (a) contacting an about 1 to about 10M nitric acid solution containing thorium, radium and actinium cations with a first exchange medium having a plurality of binding sites thereon adapted to bind said thorium to form a thorium-laden exchange medium, and to remove said thorium to form an acidic Ra/Ac solution that contains actinium and radium cations in which said actinium is present as Ac-225;
• (b) contacting said Ra/Ac solution containing Ac-225 cations with a second ion exchange medium having a plurality of binding sites thereon adapted to bind said Ac-225 thereto to form an Ac-225-laden ion exchange medium;
• (c) maintaining said Ac-225-laden ion exchange medium for a predetermined period of time so as to form Bi-213 cations from Ac-225 by radioactive decay;
• (d) contacting an acid solution with said Ac-225-laden ion exchange medium to release said Bi-213 therefrom, to form a Bi-213 cations acid solution;
• and
• (e) recovering said Bi-213 acid solution from said Ac-225-laden ion exchange medium to form a substantially impurity-free Bi-213 acid solution.

An apparatus for producing substantially impurity-free Bi-213 cations from a starting material of thorium, comprising:

• a first exchange medium having a plurality of binding sites thereon, said binding sites having an affinity for binding thorium cations thereto and having a lower affinity for binding radium cations and Ac-225 cations thereto;
• a first acid supply in flow communication with said exchange medium, said first acid supply adapted to supply a first aqueous acid to carry said starting material to said exchange medium;
• a first vessel adapted to retain said first exchange medium and further adapted to maintain contact between said exchange medium and said first aqueous acid;
• a second vessel in flow communication with said first vessel and adapted to retain therein a second exchange medium having a plurality of binding sites thereon that have an affinity for binding Ac-225 cations thereto and having a lower affinity for binding radium cations and other cations of +2 and +1 valency thereto;
• a second aqueous acid supply in flow communication with said second vessel and adapted to supply a second acid to said second vessel, said second vessel being separable from said first vessel;
• and
• a third aqueous acid supply in flow communication with said second vessel.