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Scandium-47 [T½ = 3.35 d, Eβ-(max.) = 600 keV, Eγ = 159 keV] is a relatively new radioisotope that holds tremendous potential for use in cancer theranostics. The radioisotope was produced by thermal neutron irradiation of enriched 46Ca producing 47Ca, which decays by β− emission to 47Sc. A viable method based on the selective electroamalgamation of Ca2+ ions has been developed for the clinical-scale separation of 47Sc from 47Ca. The overall yield of 47Sc after the separation process was >80% and it was obtained with >99.9% radionuclidic purity in a form suitable for radiopharmaceutical preparation. This strategy holds promise for future clinical translation of this radioisotope.

Although a wide range of separation techniques are used for preparation of radionuclide generators, the low pressure column chromatography technique has dominated the field significantly. In this technique, the adsorbent remains at the ‘heart’ of the system holding the parent radionuclide and this represents the cornerstone for its success. Although this strategy constitutes a successful paradigm for the preparation of radionuclide generators, the limited capacity of conventional adsorbents restricts their applicability for preparation of high activity generators while using low specific activity parent radionuclides. In this direction, the scope of using nanostructured materials in radionuclide generators represents an active area of research. This review is a comprehensive account of the latest research and development activities on the use of nanomaterial-based adsorbents in the development of radionuclide generators. It conveys the importance of nanomaterial-based-adsorbents, which can change the para...

While the use of nanostructured metal oxides such as nanotitania, nanozirconia, nanoalumina, and mesoporous alumina, as column matrices constitutes a successful paradigm in the development of chromatographic 99Mo/99mTc generators using (n,γ)99Mo, a comparative assessment of their properties is essential not only to determine the merits and bottlenecks of each sorbent but also to evaluate their usefulness commensurate with the specific activity of (n,γ)99Mo obtained from different sources. Characteristics which were compared included the sorption capacity, zeta potential, shelf-life of the generator, radioactive concentration and purity of 99mTc for radiopharmaceutical applications, and recovery of decayed Mo from spent generators. Mesoporous alumina was identified as the most suitable sorbent for ensuring sustainable production of clinical grade 99Mo/99mTc generators using low specific activity 99Mo.

Does the price of Nifty futures have the potential and strength to change? Given that the potential and strength for a price change lie in the trading activity variables, that is, open interest and volume, respectively, the study explores the nature of the relationship between volume, open interest and volatility in the most recent Nifty index futures contract. Applying the GARCH (1, 1) model, the results confirm a significant and positive relationship among today’s volatility, current open interest (i.e. potential) and lagged volume (i.e. strength). Therefore, the addition of these two trading variables helps the basic GARCH model predict future volatility better.

Successful use of ion-exchange chromatographic technique using nano-zirconia (t-ZrO2), to concentrate 125I solution obtained from wet chemical distillation method to levels required for preparation of 125I brachytherapy sources, is reported. A careful scrutiny of the sorption parameters of t-ZrO2 was carried out and implemented to arrive at conditions resulting in optimum retention of 125I from its solution of low radioactive concentration on a tiny column containing t-ZrO2, followed by its elution in a small volume of eluent. The developed procedure was validated using samples containing varying amounts of 125I activity in the feed and the concentration factors (CF) of 125I > 5 could be obtained. The overall recovery of 125I was >90% with appropriate radiochemical purity. The compatibility of the product in the preparation of 125I brachytherapy sources was found to be satisfactory.

Nanostructured oxides of Ti, Zr, and Al were synthesized to evaluate their efficacy as sorbent matrices for the preparation of 188W/188Re generator. These oxides, in many respects, can improve the efficiency of the generator by providing better selectivity and enhanced capacity for 188W, which arises from a higher surface area, surface energy, and surface charge, compared to the attributes of conventionally used bulk alumina. The performance of these materials, in the context of preparation of 188W/188Re generators, were compared with respect to sorption capacity for 188W, shelf-life of the generator, purity, and quality of 188Re for radiopharmaceutical applications.

A chromatographic 68Ge/68Ga generator using nano zirconia as the sorbent matrix was developed to avail 68Ga in an organic medium for industrial radiotracer applications. Acetylacetone was used as the eluent for the extractive desorption of 68Ga ions from the sorbent phase. The effect of varying the amount of acetylacetone on 68Ga yield and achieving ideal experimental conditions were studied. The major advantage of this generator is its ability to deliver ready to use “industrial 68Ga tracer” with > 90% yield and high radionuclidic and radiochemical purity. The performance of the generator remained consistent on repeated elutions over a period of 1 year.

The paper describes a method for the recovery of 137Cs from an aqueous radioactive laboratory waste solution containing 137Cs (2 µg/mL) in the presence of high concentration of Na+ using solvent extraction technique. The method comprises of adjustment of pH to the acidic range (pH = 2), contacting the aqueous radioactive solution with sodium tetraphenylboron (TPB) in nitrobenzene, whereby 137Cs binds with tetraphenylboron anions and gets separated. Results of this investigation indicate that 137Cs could be efficiently and selectively extracted from an aqueous solution media containing high concentration of Na+ under mildly acidic pH into an organic phase and back extracted with small volume of 3 M HNO3, thus enabling concentration. The proposed method was successfully applied in real samples.