In collaboration with the Argentine Atomic Energy Commission (CNEA) and Egypt’s Atomic Energy Authority (AEA), INVAP successfully completed the startup phase of the radioisotope production facility (RPF), associated to the ETRR-2 Reactor at Inshas, Egypt.
Tasks started in September 2011, and were the result of the joint effort of multidisciplinary teams designated to perform and supervise the startup and tests of both the Research Reactor (ETRR-2) and the Radioisotope Production Facility (RPF) built by INVAP for the AEA, at Inshas Atomic Center near Cairo, Egypt.
Besides, at the ETRR-2 Research Reactor, startup and testing tasks were performed at the target irradiation for Molybdenum production facility in the RPF. It is worth mentioning the production of 3 batches of Mo-99, obtaining 205, 340 and 523 Ci with an irradiation time of 2, 3 and 5 days respectively at the ETRR-2 Reactor. The nominal batch size is of 500Ci and the facility is prepared to produce 1000Ci per week.
Along with these, batches have been processed for the startup and testing of the equipment provided for charging the Technetium-99 generators and those corresponding to the Iodine-131 (fission), Iodine-125, Iridium-192 (industrial sources) and Iridium-192 (brachytherapy) processes. Startup phases of Target preparation, Chemical reactants and Quality Assurance Labs have also been finished.
