LASER ISOTOPE-SEPARATION OF C-13 - A COMPARATIVE-STUDY

IR laser chemistry of (CF3Br/Cl2) mixture and neat CF2HCl are examined in the context of C-13 enrichment. Decomposition extent, enrichment f actor and energy absorbed are measured for both systems at their respe ctive optimum conditions. A direct comparison is obtained by keeping e xtraneous factors such as laser, its pulse duration, cell, irradiation geometry etc. the same. The halogen scavenged CF3Br MPD requires lowe r fluence compared to neat CF2HCl irradiation. Overall throughput for a product with 60-65% C-13 content in a single stage is the same for b oth systems requiring a similar amount of energy. However, at lower en richment levels, CF2HCl MPD is better than (CF3Br/Cl2) photolysis in t erms of both product yield and energy absorption.