Summary of
FNCA 2017 Workshop on Research Reactor Utilization Project
November 21-23, 2017
Serpong, Indonesia
Preface
The Research Reactor Utilization (RRU) project workshop was held over three days at the National Nuclear Energy Agency (BATAN) and the Grand Zuri Hotel (BSD City), Indonesia.
The first day (Nov. 21) was allocated to the Open Seminar at BATAN. The first half of the second day (Nov. 22) was shared by the two groups, RRU and Neutron Activation Analysis (NAA). The individual project leaders of Japan overviewed the current projects of RRU and NAA and referred to several major issues of the workshop. Then, in the parallel sessions of RRU, firstly the current status of RI production and applications in each country were discussed, and secondly plans for new research reactors were presented by individual participating countries. In the NAA sessions, each country presented the progress on the activities related to air pollution and mineral resources, then discussed a number of topics including linkages with end-users. On the third day (Nov. 23), the detailed contents were summarized in each of the two groups, RRU and NAA. The technical visit to BATAN was held after the workshop.
[Parallel session (RRU)]
RRU-1: Country report on the current status of medical / industrial RI production
Australia
Supply radiopharmaceuticals and radiochemicals to public & private Nuclear Medicine Centres (~230) in Australia and export to a number of countries in the Asia-Pacific region. Mo-99 export to the US, Asia and Europe with current capacity 2300Ci (6 day) and to be increased in the future to 3500Ci (6 day). Commissioning a brand new Mo-99 manufacturing facility to achieve the higher capacity with better safety feature. There are a number of other radioisotopes produced at ANSTO e.g. Lu-177 (carrier free), I-131, Sm-153, Cr-51, Au-198 and Ir-192.
Bangladesh
The chromatographic Mo-99/Tc-99m generator production in Bangladesh started from imported fission Mo-99 in 2005 and until now the local production is meeting the total demand. Due to economic and unavailability of reactor fuel, production of I-131 using research reactor has been suspended and the demand is being met from imported bulk I-131 dispensing. In future, this division has plans to produce Lu-177 locally using TRIGA reactor.
China
The demands of medical / industrial RI in China is increasing each year, but the supply of main RIs is still dependent on importation except for Co-60 (6,000,000 Ci/year for industrial use) at present. The plan of RIs (Mo-99, I-125, I-131, Sr-89, Lu-177, C-14 and Ir-192) production in CARR has been performed to meet the domestic demands of medical / industrial RI.
Indonesia
Indonesia still lack Mo-99 for hospital, the hospitals in Indonesia fulfill some Tc-99m radioisotope by importing Tc-99m generator from Polatom and ANSTO. BATAN has been conducting research on Mo-99/Tc-99m Generator based on Zirconium-based Material (ZBM) and nanomaterials as a matrix for generator column. BATAN has been developing High Dose Rate Ir-192 (up to 10 Ci) for brachytherapy. Indonesia can supply I-131 radioisotope for all domestic demand.
Japan
Radioisotopes production/distribution business has been transferred to Chiyoda Technol Corporation from JAEA since 2000. At present, Research Reactors of JAEA are not in operation, and RI products such as Ir-192, Co-60 and Au-198 which have been produced and supplied up to now must be dependent on imported RIs production. In addition, the production technology and handling of radioisotopes is less frequently used, so it affects human resource development. It is hoped that the early restart of JRR - 3 and the introduction of a new research reactor will be considered.
Malaysia
Currently, Malaysia is developing a new radioisotope, Sm-153 labelled with EDTMP for bone palliative treatment and Br-82 for industrial use using 1MW Reactor TRIGA PUSPATI (RTP). Total demand for Tc-99m is around 20 Ci per week. Total demand for I-131 is around 20 Ci per week. Malaysian Nuclear Agency with a joint-venture from a local company is producing I-131 capsule, currently doing active run and product validation for GMP approval. Total demand for Ir-192 is around 400 sources per year. The Ir-192 for industrial purposes has been assembled by a joint-venture from a local company in Nuclear Malaysia.
Mongolia
All RIs are imported from another country. Hospitals import approximately 20 Ci /year of Tc-99m generators and 10 Ci /year of I-131 and I-125 every year from Korea. Amount of RI is limited by hospital budget therefore the actual demand of RI can be higher. Two of electron linear accelerators for medical use are under construction and PET scan facility is considered.
The Philippines
The Philippine Research Reactor 1 (PRR-1) has been non-operational since 1984; therefore no radioisotope has been produced for over 30 years. Demand for RI has highly remained and are partially met expensively by importation. The Philippines have a Tc-99m Generator production facility but is waiting for supply of Mo-99. A feasibility study of RI production has been conducted and proposes a 30 MeV cyclotron as the appropriate accelerator for the national facility, which will be the first of its kind in terms of its four multi-purpose features. Ir-192 demand: 7000 Ci per year, I-131 demand: 900 Ci per year, Mo-99/Tc-99m demands: 1000 Ci/year.
Thailand
Thailand import 100% of medical / industrial radioisotopes to meet Thailand' s demand due to Thai research reactor fuel shortage and shut down for Instrument and Control system up-grade. TINT just finished procurement process for install new 30MeV cyclotron for domestic use of F-18, I-123, Ga-67, Tl-201 and will be start operation in 2021.
Vietnam
DNRI is routinely utilized to produce radioisotopes for medical (I-131, Tc-99m, Cr-51, P-32) and industrial (Ir-192, Co-60) uses. Supply radioisotope and radiopharmaceuticals to 30 Nuclear Medicine Departments in the country. Currently, DNRI is capable to supply radioisotopes to 40-50% of the market at present; Tc-99m is 100% import. RIs for Therapeutic and Research Purpose will be introduced to the Market in small scale such as Lu-177, Sm-153.
RRU-2: Country report on new research reactor
Australia
Australia has a relatively new research reactor (11 years old).The reactor built for multipurpose including huge capabilities for radioisotopes production. The reactor is operating reliably for more than 300 days each year. Australia is willing to encouraged partnerships and collaborations both nationally and internationally.
Bangladesh
Bangladesh is going to establish a new 20-30 MW multipurpose research reactor soon. A project has been submitted to the government for the feasibility study of the technical design selection. After successful completion of the project, technical design for the reactor and associated facilities will be identified. This technical knowledge will be used for the main project of implementing a new high power research reactor in Bangladesh. Cooperation is expected from FNCA member countries.
Malaysia
Malaysian Nuclear Agency has upgraded the Reactor TRIGA PUSPATI analogue console to the new digital console (REDICS). Malaysian Nuclear Agency has a plan to establish a new research reactor which is necessary for advance utilization with high neutron flux application and to support capacity and capability building as Technical Support Organization (TSO) for the 1st Nuclear Power Project in Malaysia.
Mongolia
A new research reactor project is ongoing in Mongolia. Production of RI and NAA are largely expected from proposed research reactor. This project is only in the beginning stage according to IAEA Milestone document. The project team was established officially and preparing for assessment of national nuclear infrastructure to support this project.
The Philippines
The Philippines has in planned a Subcritical Reactor Assembly for Training, Education and Research (SATER) by using the PRR-1 TRIGA fuel elements and is expected to be commissioned by 2019. A recently concluded feasibility study has proposed for the establishment of a 10MW Multipurpose Research Reactor (NARRA) to be commissioned by 2023. They have additional needs for capacity building in various reactor topics.
Thailand
TINT of Thailand has a plan to establish a new Research Reactor project. The project will be presented to the Cabinet for approval in Dec 2017. Thailand started small Research Reactor (45kW) project responsible by Suranaree University of Technology. The project is under discussion with the regulatory body. Thailand is grateful for continuous collaborate and share information among FNCA members in the region.
RRU-3: Future plan of the RRU Project
The RRU project would consider the following topics:
- Nuclear Activation Analysis (NAA)
- Isotope Production including new isotopes
- Neutron Scattering
- Nuclear Science
- BNCT, NR
- Material Research
- New Research Reactor
- Human Resource Development
The participants discussed and chose some topics like BNCT and Material Research for next year's workshop in Osaka, Japan.
[Parallel session (NAA)]
NAA-1: Activities related to air pollution and mineral resources
The new phase (Phase 5) began in 2015, starting with two sub-projects, namely air pollution and mineral resources. In the air pollution project, suspended particulate matter (SPM) samples, especially so-called PM2.5, were planned to be collected in each participating country and the air pollution level at each site was to be monitored by analyzing these SPM samples by NAA and other methods. In the mineral resources project, minerals containing useful elements such as rare earth elements (REEs) and U were planned to be analyzed by NAA and other methods, demonstrating the effectiveness and utilization of NAA in evaluating the quality of mineral resources. For the preparation of country reports, the Japanese project leader asked participants to include the following topics in their presentations:
- Evaluation of progress for the last 12 months period in comparison with the initial plan.
- Difficulties and how those may have been overcome.
- Outstanding outcomes for the project(s).
- Efforts for strengthening linkages with end-users and any projects developed with end-users.
1) Air pollution
Australia
No samples were provided for analysis so there was no progress in this period. Instead, the focus was on the second activity, Mineral Resources.
China
In 2017, samples of SPM, including PM2.5 and PM10, were collected in Beijing twice a week. Three sets of samplers are used in this project. Because the NAA irradiation facility at CARR is not ready, the samples cannot be analyzed with NAA. Instead the samples were analyzed by XRF and PIXE. Five pollution sources were found in PM2.5 including coal burning, soil, construction industry, waste incineration and vehicle exhaust. The main sources were coal burning and vehicle exhaust.
Indonesia
SPM has been analyzed for 15 cities of Indonesia. Sampling was carried out in cooperation with 15 Regional Environmental Offices. SPM was collected periodically using Gent stack air samplers to obtain PM2.5 and PM10 fraction. The elemental quantification of the PM2.5 fraction was performed using NAA and XRF. The PM2.5 and PM10 data obtained in 2015-2016 have been compared and discussed in this workshop. Five elements S, Si, Fe, K, and Zn were also presented and compared for the same period.
Japan
As no research reactors usable for NAA have been operated since 2011, no progress on the SPM subproject could not presented. In our experiences on NAA of SPM samples, it was confirmed that SPM multi-element analysis can be performed with an accuracy of ~5% by NAA coupled with k0-method at JRR-3 and JRR-4. We also confirmed reasonable consistency in analytical data between NAA and other analytical methods and reliability of the sampling protocol.
Malaysia
Malaysia had undertaken the study of SPM in Bangi Station on the rooftop of a Nuclear Malaysia building in Bangi, Selangor. The Gent stack sampler with flow rate of 15 L/min was used to collect two fraction of fine (PM 2.5) and coarse (PM 2.5 - 10) particles. 465 pairs of samples have been collected in the period May 2012 to Oct 2017. The data overall have lower concentration levels during the wet season (November-March) and higher concentration levels in the dry season (May-September). The six major factors that contribute to the air quality in Bangi area have been found to be biomass burning/smoke, soil dust, motor vehicles, secondary sulfate, sea salt and soil construction.
Mongolia
In Mongolia, SPM samples have been collected at the Nuclear Research Centre, NUM, since 2004, and have been analyzed by ED-XRF. The SPM measurements in 2016 have shown following: the average value of PM2.5 is 102.7 µg/m3 which is four times higher than the Mongolian air quality standard value and the average of PM10-2.5 is 257.0 µg/m3 which is five times higher than the standard. Plotting the monthly values showed that the changes in values of both fine and coarse particles were correlated with the season.
The Philippines
The Philippines has been regularly sampling SPM in at least two sites in Metro Manila and soon another two more sites will be added in Western Visayas due to a new project. Although a new XRF system was recently acquired and installed at PNRI, collaborative work with other member states will be needed to enable the air filters to be analysed using NAA. Strong linkages have been established with several end users including the Environmental Management Bureau, local government units, schools and universities.
Vietnam
A total of 96 SPM (PM10 and PM2.5) samples were collected in Ho Chi Minh City one per week from January to December 2014. The sampling coordinates were: latitude 10o46' N, longitude 106o41' E, altitude 9 m. A total of 29 elements in the SPM samples were analyzed using the Dalat research reactor and k0-NAA. A further 20 SPM samples were collected in Hanoi and 15 elements were determined in these by k0-NAA. This project will finish in December 2017.
2) Mineral resources
Australia
We have continued to engage with the mining and minerals industry, working with two new companies to analyze metal ores using NAA. We have also used the particular capabilities of NAA to assist companies in the preparation of reference materials for use by the mining industry. A report on the first laboratory inter-comparison of rare earth elements (REE) involving participating laboratories has been completed. A recommendation has been made to undertake a second inter-comparison round using a different REE material in order to enable participants to demonstrate an improvement in performance.
Bangladesh
Due to the unavailability of resources for sample collection we could not participate in broader activities related to the mineral resources sub-project but did participate in the first laboratory inter-comparison of rare earth elements (REE). In the last 12 months we have participated in two other inter-comparison exercises using NAA and have analyzed sediment samples from six national rivers by NAA. Major, minor and REEs were determined in these sediment samples. We have increased the engagement of the laboratory in the field of academic research, internal & external collaborations and linkage with end users.
China
NAA is an important tool for analyzing REE in ore sources. The NAA Laboratory at CIAE participated in the first laboratory inter-comparison of rare earth elements (REE), the interferences of the uranium fission were corrected with the interference k0 method (IK0).
Indonesia
The analysis of minerals rich in REE and uranium was not working as expected. Until now the application of fission correction to REE could not be done due to some regulatory, safety and practical difficulties. These included problems related to the procurement of a uranium standard and the need for a Safety Analysis Report (SAR) for the irradiation of uranium in the rabbit system. The SAR needs to be reviewed and approved by the Nuclear Energy Regulatory Agency of Indonesia.
Kazakhstan
Cooperation with traditional partners was continued for the analysis of rock samples, some products of mineral resources processing for gold and accompanying elements, and REE content. Several more potential end-users showed their interest in the NAA method. Development of NAA methodology in the Institute of Nuclear Physics obtained state financial support from 2018.
Malaysia
The NAA Unit in Nuclear Malaysia is not directly involved in geochemical exploration activities but rather acts in a supporting role for analysis for both internal researchers and external clients from industry, the regulatory body (Atomic Energy Licensing Board, AELB) and universities. The NAA Unit is currently analyzing samples for the Nuclear Malaysia Flagship Program which is for thorium sites exploration. The NAA unit also providing services to a radiation consultant company (Asia Lab) as well as AELB for the analysis of samples from sites around the REE extraction plant of Lynas in Gebeng, Pahang.
Mongolia
We have been determining the content of elements in ore samples of REE, uranium, gold, copper, poly-metals and silver from the largest deposits in Mongolia using XRF, ICP-MS, NAA and others. Mining companies have been interested in the following: elemental analysis of geological and ore samples; assessment of the impact of contamination from industrial and mining processing activities; and workplace monitoring and occupational health studies.
Thailand
For the past 12 months, the TRR-1/M1 research reactor could not operate fully because the operating license has not yet been approved. Consequently there was no progress in the application of NAA in the mineral resources sub-project. During that time, the accuracy of the determination of REE, uranium, thorium and major elements using the open-acid digestion-ICP-OES as well as the semi-quantitative (standardless) and quantitative WD-XRF techniques was evaluated through the analysis of seven certified geological reference materials. The results were also compared with those obtained by NAA and ICP-MS (obtained from DMR laboratory).
Vietnam
Through co-operation between Vietnam National Minerals Corp. Rare Earth Joint Stock Co. and the Japanese Rare Earth Development Co, six Dong Pao rare earth ore samples were collected in the north of Vietnam from one of the largest rare-earth mines in the country. A total of 19 elements were determined by k0-NAA.
NAA-2: Promotion of Research Reactor Utilization for NAA
It became clear during the workshop that the engagement with end-users was generally very good and has shown a strong improvement in the last few years. Some countries have a main focus on industry users and others are more aligned with the needs of the research community or government agencies, according to national priorities. All centers provide opportunities for training and the development of human resources. A number of research papers have been published on the work carried out through the FNCA, providing an indicator of the quality of the work carried out by the NAA group. These publications also provide a means of promoting the capabilities of NAA to end-users. It is clear that NAA remains one of the main uses of research reactors in the region and continues to serve an important role in socio-economic development.
NAA-3: General Discussion
1) SPM sub-project
The overall progress is satisfactory but it has been recognized that there are some opportunities for improvement. A comprehensive protocol for the establishment and operation of air sampling stations has been discussed and distributed to participants. A coordinated program to involve NAA facilities in the routine measurement of the SPM sample filters, to add to other analytical techniques, is being established and the results will be reported at the next workshop. It is planned to publish a paper on these results and compare them with data collected in earlier phases of the NAA project. Comparing results from the same locations collected more than 10 years apart may show evidence of trends in air pollution in the region.
2) REE/Mineral Resources sub-project
One laboratory inter-comparison has been completed and results have been presented. It was clear that the samples used in the first round presented challenges to all participants; interpretation of the results have identified opportunities to improve performance. In the current year a second round is planned. One option is to purchase a reference material containing REEs for distribution to participating laboratories and to agree on a common approach to the measurement protocol through communication between the participants. It is expected that all laboratories will show an improvement in performance in the second round. Future publication of results will assist participants in promoting NAA to potential end-users..
3) Promotion of NAA
In the discussion it became clear that participants use a large variety channels to promote the capabilities of NAA and engage with potential end-users. These include: national seminars and international conferences; lectures at universities and institutes; websites; participation in international proficiency tests; provision of training courses; journal publications; and engagement with regulatory authorities. Common difficulties over all the NAA centers are related to shortages of resources, both financial and staffing. In a number of places, the NAA team is sub-critical and at risk of losing key knowledge through the retirement or promotion of experience individuals.
NAA-4: Conclusions
- There is a strong sense that the NAA group has been successful in achieving significant advances in the current year, through the contribution of each participating country, and that the group is on track to meet the planned objectives.
- The need to maintain and grow productive linkages with end-users has been recognized and continuing improvement in this area has been well demonstrated.
- Two sub-projects, air pollution and mineral resources, are running in the current phase with the participating countries shown in the table below.
Country |
Air pollution - SPM |
Mineral resources - REE |
Australia |
x |
x |
Bangladesh |
x |
x |
China |
x |
x |
Indonesia |
x |
x |
Japan |
x |
x |
Kazakhstan |
|
x |
Korea |
x |
|
Malaysia |
x |
|
Mongolia |
x |
|
The Philippines |
x |
(x) |
Thailand |
|
x |
Vietnam |
x |
(x) |
x – intention to participate
(x) – participation subject to national ratification
|
