ANL progress in developing an LEU target and process for Mo-99 production : cooperation with CNEA.

The primary mission of the Reduced Enrichment in Research and Test Reactors (RERTR) Program is to facilitate the conversion of research and test-reactor fuel and targets from high-enriched uranium (HEU) to low-enriched uranium (LEU). One of the current goals at Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) is to assist the Argentine Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica (CNEA) in developing an LEU foil target and a process for Mo production. Specifically addressed in this paper is ANL R&D related to this conversion: (1) designing a prototype production vessel for digesting irradiated LEU foils in alkaline solutions and (2) developing a new digestion method to address all issues related to HEU to LEU conversion.