Reversed-phase ion-pair liquid chromatography for the purification of 177Lu

Branched-Chain-Induced Host-Guest Assembly in Covalent-Organic Frameworks for Efficient Separation of No-Carrier-Added 177Lu

No-carrier-added (NCA) 177Lu is one of the most interesting nuclides for endoradiotherapy. With the dramatically rapid development of radiopharmaceutical and nuclear medicine, there is a sharp increase in the radionuclide supply of NCA 177Lu, which has formed a great challenge to current radiochemical separation constituted on classical materials. Hence, it is of vital importance to design and prepare new functional materials able of recovering 177Lu from an irradiated target with excellent efficacy. In this work, we proposed to apply noncovalent interactions to regulate the porous properties of covalent organic frameworks (COFs) by tuning the branched chain, rendering related covalent hosts different encapsulation abilities toward a flexible guest, 2-ethylhexylphosphonic acid mono-2-ethylhexyl ester (P507). More interestingly, we found that the noncovalent interaction has a great effect on the host-guest complexes, which can achieve efficient NCA 177Lu separation with high recovery (95.97%). A systematic mechanism combined with experimental and theoretical investigations has confirmed that the noncovalent interactions between COFs and P507 play a preeminent role in adjusting the macroscopic properties of the host-guest complexes. This work not only uncovers that noncovalent interactions can affect the basic properties of covalent organic bonded materials but also provides a strategy for the design and preparation of other new moieties with specific functionalities.

Progress of energy-related radiochemistry and radionuclide production in the Republic of Korea

The field of radiochemistry in the Republic of Korea has expanded greatly over the last three decades to meet the rapid growth of technological demands in various areas such as nuclear energy and nuclear technologies for human health and environmental protection. Major research activities, which were initially centered at the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI), have gradually spread to major universities and the commercial sector. In this review, progress and recent research trends in nuclear and radiochemistry in Korea are summarized. The main research outcomes achieved by KAERI scientists are highlighted, with emphasis on basic actinide chemistry in nuclear fuel cycles, the radioanalytical chemistry of various radionuclides from radioactive waste and the environment, and medical radionuclide production. In addition, recent efforts to promote radiochemical education and future perspectives are briefly outlined.