Comparison of Radionuclide Impurities Activated during Irradiation of (18)O-Enriched Water in Tantalum and Silver Targets during the Production of (18)F in a Cyclotron

During the production of (18)F, as a result of the interaction of the beam of protons and secondary neutrons with the structural elements of the target body, many radionuclide impurities are created in the cyclotron. As part of this work, we theoretically predicted which isotopes would be activated in the target tantalum or silver bodies. Subsequently, we used gamma spectrometry analysis to verify these predictions. The results were compared with the work of other authors who studied titanium and niobium as materials for making the target body. Tantalum has been evaluated as the most favorable in terms of generating radionuclide impurities during the production of (18)F by irradiation of (18)O-enriched water in accelerated proton cyclotrons. Only three radionuclides were identified in the tested samples: (181)W, (181)Hf, and (182)Ta with a half-life of fewer than 120 days. The remaining reactions led to the formation of stable isotopes.