We present a production method of a positron-emitting bromine isotope
Br-76 (T-1/2 = 16.2 h) using a low-energy proton reaction Se-76(p, n)B
r-76. A pressed copper (I) selenide pellet containing enriched Se-76 i
s used as a target. Irradiation of a 180 mg/cm(2) target with 16 --> 8
MeV protons gives a yield of 65-70 MBq/mu Ah EOB. In our target set-u
p with a simple water cooling, the target can withstand 14 mu A. Bromi
ne-76 is separated with an efficiency of 65-75%, within 60-75 min usin
g dry distillation at 1090 degrees C. The loss of target material is l
ess than 1% per separation cycle and the target can be re-used several
times. Thermal chromatography is applied to separate Br-76 from trace
s of volatilized selenium. The method allows a simple and economical p
roduction of Br-76 With the use of accelerators commonly available at
PET-centers. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.