1. Overview of Cyclotron Facilities

2. Objective
To present an overview of the requirements to establish and operate a cyclotron facility to produce positron emitters, including the accelerator itself and associated systems.

3. 1) The use of radioisotopes produced in accelerators;
2) The production of radioisotopes and types of targets;
3) The cyclotrons;
4) The hot cells;
5) Types of Facilities (I - V);
6) Perspectives

4. Imaging Radiotherapy Radiotracers
The use of radioisotopes produced in accelerators
The use of radionuclides in the physical and biological sciences can be divided into three categories:
Imaging
Radiotherapy
Radiotracers
TECHNICAL REPORTS SERIES No. 465

5. 3) The tracer concentration can be measured.
In order to be used as tracers, the radionuclides and the compounds to which they are attached must obey the tracer principles, which state that:
1) The tracer behaves or interacts with the system to be probed in a known and reproducible fashion.
2) The tracer does not alter or perturb the system in any measurable fashion.
3) The tracer concentration can be measured.

6. Some typical radionuclides used in imaging
Half life
Reaction
Use
99mTc
6 h
100Mo(p, 2n)
235U(n,f)
SPECT
123I
13.1 h
124Xe(p, 2n)
124Xe(p, pn)
124Xe(p, 2pn)
123Te(p, n)
124Te(p, 2n)

7. Radionuclide
Half life
Reaction
Use
201Tl
73.1 h
203Tl(p, 3n)
SPECT
67Ga
3.2 d
68Zn(p,2n)
11C
20.3 min
14N(p,α)
PET
18F
110 min
18O(p,n)
natNe(d, α)
13N
10 min
16O(p, α)
13C(p, n)
15O
2 min
15N(p, n)
14N(d, 2n)
16O(p, pn)

8. Functional Information + Anatomic Details

11. Cyclotrons ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
The production of radioisotopes and types of targets
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Cyclotrons

12. Not all radionuclides can be produced in reactors, e.g. 201Tl, 18F, …
Many radionuclides are produced in reactors as fission products or through activation, e.g. 99Mo
Radio nuclide
Reaction
Q - value
15O
14N(d,n)15O
1 MeV
18F
18O(p,n)18F
3 MeV
201Tl
203Tl(p,3n)201Pb201Tl
18 MeV
111In
112Cd(p,2n)111In
11 MeV
67Ga
68Zn(p,2n)67Ga
12 MeV
Not all radionuclides can be produced in reactors, e.g. 201Tl, 18F, …
These can only be produced through threshold reactions with charged particles
Hence there is a need for high energy charged particles

13. Cyclotron characteristics Type of target Yield of the production
Choice of nuclear reaction:
Cyclotron characteristics
Type of target
Yield of the production

14. Reaction mechanism 18O 19F* 18F 8 p - 10 n 9 p - 10 n 8 p - 10 n 1 p

15. Cyclotron produced
Reactor produced

16. Targets Constitution Shape Choice of target Choice of reaction
Direct production
Separation of products
Quality Control
Indirect production
Separation of products
Targets

17. Targets
solid
liquid
gas

18. The target holder must be designed to accommodate the material that is irradiated according to its characteristics and physical state.
The main concern in target design is the generation and dissipation of heat.
The purpose of the cooling system is to guarantee the integrity of the blank and target holder.

19. The Cyclotrons

21. There are many different types of cyclotrons:
A cyclotron is a compact electromagnetic device capable of accelerating charged particles to high energies.
There are many different types of cyclotrons:
A positive ion cyclotron:
Proton: 40 MeV, 100 µA
Deuteron: 20 MeV, 230 µA
Alpha: 40 MeV, 80 µA

22. A negative ion cyclotron:
Proton: 30 MeV, 350 µA
Deuteron: 15 MeV, 100 µA

23. A self-shielded cyclotron:
Proton: 11 MeV, 80 µA

24. Characteristics of cyclotrons
Particle type:
Light or heavy ions are accelerated
Either positive or negative ions are used
Most common are protons and deuterons
Energy of the particle beam:
High energies are achieved
Most common are energies between 10 and 30 MeV
Cyclotrons with a maximal beam energy of several 100 MeV are available for research purposes and radiotherapy

25. Characteristics of cyclotrons (cont)
Beam current:
A beam of charged particles represents an electric current
Maximal beam currents of a few 10 µA up to over 1 mA are commercially available
Power output:
A combination of particle energy and beam current
Typically between 1 kW and 10 kW

26. First Generation:
It was not possible to distinguish between commercial cyclotrons and equipment used in research.
The Cyclotron Corporation (TCC) and Scanditronix
Accelerate protons
Internal ion source
Local production

27. CP42 and MC32NI (Scanditronix)‏
Second Generation:
In the 70s, the construction of a H- accelerator was proposed. The extraction was very simple, leading to a broad range of possible energies for the beam.
CP42 and MC32NI (Scanditronix)‏

28. Third Generation:
Developed based on market expectations and improvements of existing H- cyclotrons.

29. 1968 1975 1984 Cyclotrons for radionuclide production in Germany
1968
1975
1984
CV 28
Particles and energies: p = 2-24 MeV d = 3-14 MeV 3He2+ = 5-36 MeV 4He2+ = 6-28 MeV
Philips 140/IV Particles and energies: p = 4-30 MeV d = 2-16 MeV 3He2+ = 6-42 MeV 4He2+ = 6-36 MeV
MC16 Particles and energies: p = 17.2 MeV d = 8.3 MeV 3He2+ = 12.4 MeV 4He2+ = 16.5 MeV
CP42H Particles and energies: negative ions p = MeV

30. 1993
2000
2008
PETtrace
Particles and energies: negative ions p = 16.5 MeV d = 8.4 MeV
CYCLONE 18/9Particles and energies: negative ions  p = 18 MeV d = 9 MeV
RDS 112 Particles and energies: negative ions p = 11 MeV
TR19/9 Particles and energies: negative ions p = 19 MeV d = 9 MeV

31. Hot Cells

33. Protons are accelerated
Production of 18F
Protons are accelerated
Hit the target (18O)
Interaction with the 18O
Neutron emission

34. The target irradiation with a proton beam produces 18F;
Generally, the irradiation takes 2 hours (one half life);
FDG
18F is sent to the synthesis module, to react with some components in order to generate the FDG;
The synthesis module performs various operations like cooling, filtration, purification, etc.
Synthesis: 1 hour

35. Types of Facilities
The appropriate design of the facility is essential to achieve the desired safety and quality for the final product.

36. Types of Facilities
The design is derived, in a large extent, from the application of national (or international) standards and guidelines for the manufacture of radiopharmaceuticals and radiation protection.

37. The application of access control, interlocks, segregation and pass-through must be integrated into the design of the building, together with the types of structural materials suitable for achieving the objectives of the facility.
The design must optimize the flow of materials and people, and integrate structural elements necessary to achieve these objectives.

38. Facility Type (TRS 471): TYPE I II III IV V  X FDG production
Distribution
local
regular
large scale
variable
Other short-lived radionuclides (11C, 13N, 15O....) X
Research
extensive program
Perform maintenance tasks in the cyclotron
Other nontraditional emitters (201Tl, 123,124I, 67Ga, 64Cu....)
maybe