Abstract:
To address the technical challenge that traditional electrochemical methods face in balancing high
90Y recovery with low
90Sr residue during the separation of
90Sr/
90Y, this study proposes for the first time the combination of the hold-back carrier method with electrochemistry. By introducing non-radioactive Sr as a hold-back carrier, the
90Sr content in
90Y was reduced to below 1×10
−6 Bq
90Sr/Bq
90Y, while maintaining a
90Y recovery rate of over 80%. The effects of electrolyte pH, electrolysis voltage, electrolysis time, and the hold-back carrier Sr on the recovery of
90Y and the residue of
90Sr were systematically investigated. It is confirmed that the electrolysis voltage is the key factor affecting
90Y recovery, and the addition of hold-back carrier Sr can lower the
90Sr residue by more than one order of magnitude. Under optimized conditions (electrolyte pH=3, electrolysis voltage of 4 V, single-cycle electrolysis duration of 1 h), after two electrolysis cycles with the hold-back carrier Sr introduced in the second cycle, 810 mCi of
90Y is obtained from 1 Ci of
90Sr/
90Y feed material, achieving a
90Y recovery yield of 81% and a
90Sr content in
90Y was 3.1×10
−7 Bq
90Sr/Bq
90Y. The
90Y product meets pharmaceutical-grade requirements in terms of radionuclide purity, radiochemical purity, and chemical impurities.