Production study of high specific activity NCA Re-186g by proton and deuteron cyclotron irradiation

Very high specific activity (A S ) 186g Re could be produced by either proton or deuteron cyclotron irradiation on highly enriched 186 W target in no-carrier-added (NCA) form, leading to a A S very close to the theoretical carrier free (CF) value of 6.88 GBq μg −1 . Thick Target Yields (TTYs), obtained irradiating both thick metal W targets of natural isotopic composition and highly enriched powdered 186 W targets, were measured at different particles energies taking into account high accuracy and precision. The evaluation of radionuclidic purities of 186g Re obtained activating highly enriched 186 W by both p and d were also carried out and accurately compared. The thin-target excitation functions for all Re (A = 181, 182, 183, 184, 186 and their metastable levels), and W and Ta coproduced radionuclides will be presented elsewhere in deep details.