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Break the monopoly! China has achieved full domestic production of carbon-14
2024-04-20 16:10:29
"Carbon-14 irradiation production targets start piling up!" At 13:48 on April 20, with an order, the carbon-14 target was removed from China Nuclear Power (stock code: 601985) Successfully pumped out the Qinshan Nuclear Power heavy water reactor unit, which was the first time that China used nuclear power commercial reactors to produce carbon-14 isotopes in bulk, and China has since completely cracked the problem of domestic carbon-14 isotope dependence on imports, and realized the full domestic supply of carbon-14.
Carbon-14 isotope is widely used in agriculture, chemistry, medicine, biology and other fields, with high medical and scientific value, the main applications include Helicobacter pylori detection, pharmacokinetic study, β ray environmental monitoring system and so on. Previously, China's carbon-14 supply almost all relied on imports, the price is expensive and the supply is not guaranteed, and the supply shortage has seriously restricted the development of downstream industries.
The use of commercial heavy water reactor irradiation to produce carbon-14 is the first medical isotope project built in Qinshan nuclear Power isotope production base. Qinshan Nuclear Power actively performs the responsibilities of central enterprises, actively practices the Qinshan experience of "independent innovation and integrated development", creatively proposes the development idea of "1+1+2+4", clearly proposes the construction of "isotope production base", actively promotes the development of isotope application industry chain, and jointly builds the largest isotope production base in the country.
As the production technology of carbon-14 isotope is the first in China, Qinshan Nuclear Power Plant develops and produces carbon-14 from "zero". Qinshan Nuclear Power set up a special project team, selected a number of technical backbone, in-depth analysis of the latest scientific and technological progress and industry dynamics at home and abroad, participate in high-end seminars, standard exchanges and special training, while giving full play to the "overall and collaborative" advantage, with a number of domestic scientific research and production units to carry out exchanges and cooperation, and jointly study carbon-14 isotope localization program.
In addition, Qinshan Nuclear Power has set up party members' commandos such as carbon-14 production research and development and pile top transformation, giving full play to the vanguard and model role of party members, overcoming challenges such as raw material procurement difficulties, process research and development difficulties, and time constraints to ensure that various tasks are carried out as planned.
Today, carbon-14 comes out of the pile
What did this "comprehensive localization" leverage?
A blowpipe, a small bottle of purple medicine, an instrument that takes up less than half the table, half an hour... Using the isotope carbon-14, a simple exhalation can determine whether your stomach is infected with Helicobacter pylori - a basic, unremarkable annual physical that is less impressive than a tube of blood drawn.
However, with this "one breath", we have relied on imports for many years.
At 13:48 on April 20, the irradiated carbon-14 target was successfully extracted from the Qinshan Nuclear Power Heavy water Reactor unit invested and controlled by China Nuclear Power (stock code: 601985), a subsidiary of CNNC Group. "This is the first time that China has achieved mass production of carbon-14 isotopes in commercial nuclear power reactors, and it is expected that we can produce about 150 curies of carbon-14 isotopes per year, which can fully meet the market demand in China." Qinshan nuclear power general manager Shang Xian and so told reporters.
At this point, China has completely cracked the problem of domestic carbon-14 isotope dependence on imports and realized the comprehensive localization of the isotope.
Break the wall --
It is 3 o 'clock in the morning, and the nuclear island core of Unit 2 of Qinshan Nuclear Power Plant 3 is still brightly lit. Proceed from the containment entrance and continue up three floors to Platform 501. Here, the installation and commissioning of a topside irradiation device for isotope production is under way. "The installation of the irradiated isotope production device at the top of the pile is of epoch-making significance for isotope production at the Qinshan nuclear Power Base. With it, we can continuously produce many isotopes with short half-lives without stopping the reactor - most of the medical isotopes produced by the reactor can be produced. When the plant is put into operation, it will be able to produce isotopes such as lutetium-177 and yttrium-90 by irradiation on a large scale. Li Shisheng, director of the special Engineering Department of Qinshan Nuclear Power Plant, signed and read several technical drawings between answering reporters' questions.
At this moment, He Shaohua, the chief technician of the China Nuclear Group, has been busy up and down for more than 6 hours, the heavy anti-strike shoes have been worn to the feet, the bright yellow protective clothing has been soaked with sweat, and the protective mask is firmly attached to the face, but he deals with various technical problems without any pause, every second of the overhaul of the nuclear power plant is extremely precious, the next three consecutive days, He Shaohua has only one thing on his mind: the race against time.
On the same day, it was the third day of the heavy water reactor R & D Section chief Meng Zhiliang's arrival in Beijing, carrying the improvement plan for the installation of the reactor top irradiated isotope production device, he took his team to report to the superior regulatory authorities, and strive for a more optimized design plan to be approved in time during the overhaul, so as to effectively improve the performance of the device. From the production of industrial cobalt-60, the production of medical carbon-14 to the installation of the irradiated isotope production device at the top of the pile today, he went to Shanghai, Beijing, Baotou... The more he ran, the more help and support he received, and the more confidence he gained.
This is April 19, the day before the Qinshan nuclear power plant carbon-14 was officially released. Before the joy of success could be tasted, the two important leaders of the isotope special team were already on their way to the next stop.
Producing isotopes in commercial reactors has not been an easy road. "We need to break through not only technical barriers, but also management barriers." Shang Xianhe told reporters: "Nuclear power plant is a power reactor, we are mainly engaged in nuclear power professional, to carry out cross-field isotope production carbon-14, then to understand the needs of users, carbon-14 out of the pile but also purification, conversion to produce products, product application scenarios also involve the medical field, it should be said, from the target to nuclear medicine this is a very long industrial chain, can be described as' mountains and rivers'; On the other hand, as we all know, our country attaches great importance to the safety of the reactor, to carry out this work must fully assess the impact of this work on the safety of the reactor, and finally complete the safety approval, can obtain the irradiation license of the National Nuclear Safety Administration, which is also a 'difficult and dangerous'."
In front of Li Shisheng, the technical leader of this work, these "difficulties" are clearly quantified one after another. He told reporters: "The carbon-14 project design requires that the probability of failure of the target is less than 4×10-8. "In the case of the failure safety verification of the irradiated isotope production unit at the top of the reactor, we repeated the experiment 1,200 times."
-- For "Healthy China"
After six years of overcoming industrial cobalt-60 production and filling the gap in China, the use of commercial heavy water reactor irradiation to produce carbon-14 is the first medical isotope project in the construction of Qinshan nuclear Power isotope production base. Why carbon-14?
"Previously, China's carbon-14 has only produced a few curies on the experimental reactor, and the scale production is completely white paper." "Although it is difficult, it is more meaningful," said Sangheon-Hwa.
The application of isotope carbon-14 is not limited to medical, it is widely used in agriculture, chemistry, medicine, biology and other fields, with high medical and scientific value. In addition to Helicobacter pylori detection, it is also used in pharmacokinetic studies, β-ray environmental monitoring systems, etc. "Previously, China's carbon-14 supply almost all relied on imports, the price is expensive and the supply is not guaranteed, and the supply shortage has seriously restricted the development of downstream industries." Mr. Shang said.
In June 2021, eight national ministries and commissions jointly issued the "Medium and Long-term Development Plan for Medical Isotopes (2021-2035)", which put forward specific requirements for China to establish a stable and independent medical isotope supply security system and accelerate the development of medical isotopes and industry.
To realize the independent supply of carbon-14 medical isotopes is related to the strategy of "healthy China". "Benefit the country, the people and the enterprises." In Shang Xianhe's eyes, this is the driving force behind their repeated choice to "break the wall".
Compared with the current production of carbon-14, which mainly relies on research reactor production, the Qinshan nuclear power heavy water reactor unit has a large irradiation space in the reactor, and maintains stable operation of high power for a long time, which can ensure the stable supply of radionuclides and safe production, which will not affect the power generation capacity and safe operation of the unit, and the production cost is lower. In 2019, Qinshan Nuclear Power Co., LTD., together with Shanghai Nuclear Engineering Institute, CNNC North and other units, carried out independent research and development and production of carbon-14 isotopes for five years, and the first batch of carbon-14 targets were put into reactor in April 2022.
Since the production target of carbon-14 was put into the reactor in April 2022, a sword of Damocles for nuclear safety has been hanging over the head of Shang Heon-wha. "During the 677 days of operation, once the target fails to withstand the radiation test, the aluminum nitride powder inside will disperse into the core and form a foreign body risk, although I have experienced thousands of experiments before, I have full confidence, but until the answer is finally revealed, the heart is still hanging."
On April 11, Unit 2 of Qinshan No. 3 Plant was shut down for overhaul, and the answer finally came out: carbon-14 production targets continued to maintain a good safety margin. "This 677 day operation period has created a new record for continuous grid operation of nuclear power units in China, which fully proves the maturity of our reactor operation capability, and is also the most fundamental base for our isotope production." Sangheon-hwa is smiling happily. At that time, as the chief of the operation, he was personally operated as "China's nuclear power localization leap" - the No. 1 unit of Qinshan No. 2 Plant reached the critical point, and he was smiling so freely; Participating in the Qinshan second plant expansion project, Unit 3 set a record of 53.5 months of commissioning announced the official launch of commercial operation, he is also smiling so happily; Today, the full realization of the localization of carbon-14 has sown a seed for the construction of "healthy China", and he is also smiling so happily.
After separation and purification, the carbon-14 target will be supplied to the market by the end of 2024, and the output can fully meet domestic demand, which will strongly promote the development of China's isotope application industry chain, further establish and improve the research and development system of industry-university-research cooperation to carry out commercial reactor irradiation production of isotopes, and boost and pull the research and development of advanced nuclear drugs and nuclear medical industry of downstream medical enterprises. Provide strong support for the development of domestic isotope application industry.
In 2020, Qinshan Nuclear Power clearly proposed to build an "isotope production base", actively promote the development of isotope application industry chain, and jointly build the largest isotope production base in the country. Shang Xianhe said: "At that time, Wu Bangguo, the former vice Premier of The State Council, wrote an inscription for the Qinshan nuclear power plant, 'China's nuclear power starts from here.' Until today, we have always practiced the word "start". China's first 300,000-kilowatt nuclear power plant started here, the domestic million-kilowatt nuclear power plant started here, and today our commercial reactor production of isotopes also started here. The spirit of Qinshan Nuclear Power is that no matter how difficult it is, we have the courage to 'start'."
