Background: ⁶⁶Ga (t_1/2=9.49 h, β⁺: 4.153 MeV, γ: 511, 834, 1039, 2752 keV) has a wide range of applications in different fields of medical sciences. Production of ⁶⁶Ga became one of our main interests, according to its increasing applications in nuclear medicine, particularly in PET imaging.

Materials and Methods: ⁶⁶ Zn (p,n)⁶⁶Ga reaction was determined as the best choice for the production of ⁶⁶Ga, according to the present facilities and conditions. The bombardment was
performed by 15 MeV protons in Cyclone 30-IBA accelerator with a current intensity of 180 μA for 67 min. ALICE nuclear code and SRIM nuclear program were used to determine the optimum energy and target thickness. Targets were prepared by electroplating of ⁶⁶Zn (>95%) on a copper backing. Chemical processing was performed by a no carrier added method consisting of ion exchange chromatography and liquid-liquid extraction. Anion exchange chromatography was used for the recovery of target material. Quality control of the product was carried out in two steps of chemical and radionuclidic purity control.

Results: The activity of ⁶⁶Ga was 2.41 Ci at the end of bombardment (E.O.B.) and the production yield was 12.04 mCi/μAh. The chemical separation yield was 93% and the yield of chemica l recovery of the target material was 97%. Quality control tests showed a radionuclidic purity of more than 97% and the amounts of chemical impurities were in accordance with standard levels.

Discussion: Our production yield was comparable with previous reports given in the literature. The chemical separation method used in this research was simple and brought up acceptable results. So, this process can be considered as one of the best choices for the production of ⁶⁶Ga. Iran . J. Radiat. Res., 2004 2 (3): 149-158