Full-Scale Testing of the Ambient Pressure, Acid-Dissolution Front-End Process for the Current 99 Mo Recovery Processes
The Global Threat Reduction Initiative (GTRI) Conversion Program is actively developing technologies for converting civilian facilities that use high enriched uranium (HEU) to low enriched uranium (LEU) fuels and targets. The conversion of conventional HEU targets to LEU for the production of 99 Mo production requires approximately five times the uranium in a target to maintain the 99 Mo yield on a per-target basis. Under GTRI, Argonne National Laboratory (Argonne) is developing two frontend options for current 99 Mo production processes to allow the use of LEU-foil targets. In both processes, the aim is to produce a frontend product that is compatible with current 99 Mo purification operations and will provide the same or a higher yield of 99 Mo for the same number of irradiated targets.