DOE Expands Stable Isotope Production Capabilities at Oak Ridge National Laboratory

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science's Isotope R&D and Production (IRP) program has re-established and revolutionized its domestic stable isotope enrichment capabilities. Led by pioneering advancements at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), this expansion stabilizes the national isotope market, reducing decades of reliance on foreign suppliers for critical medical, national security, and industrial technologies.

Next-Gen Enrichment is Here

Since the decommissioning of the historic World War II-era calutrons in 1998, the United States has lacked scaled, domestic stable isotope enrichment. Today, that capability returns to America. By optimizing Electromagnetic Isotope Separation (EMIS) and Gas Centrifuge Isotope Separation (GCIS) technologies, IRP and ORNL have developed modern enrichment systems whose capabilities exceed those of the legacy Cold War-era systems.

At the forefront of this revival is ORNL's plasma-science-based EMIS technology, which represents a massive leap forward in precision and versatility. Unlike traditional methods, modern EMIS devices can simultaneously isolate and enrich multiple isotopes of a single element in a single production run. This breakthrough efficiency allows the U.S. to deliver a diverse portfolio of critical, high-impact isotopes:

• Life-saving medicine: one EMIS device routinely enriches ytterbium-176-the critical precursor for FDA-approved, targeted cancer therapies like lutetium-177.
• Quantum computing & next-gen tech: during the same EMIS run, researchers can concurrently harvest ytterbium-171 for atomic clocks and quantum computing. ORNL EMIS devices have also demonstrated the ability to produce other quantum computing and advanced semiconductor isotopes such as germanium-76 and silicon-28.
• National security & diagnostics: an EMIS device also produces unique nickel isotopes that serve as precursors for homeland security airport scanners and Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scans.

Complementing these EMIS breakthroughs, ORNL's GCIS capability provides a highly efficient, targeted method for enriching key gaseous isotopes. Current GCIS efforts are focused on producing xenon-129, a vital isotope used in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to diagnose lung diseases.

Investing in Future Growth

To continue enabling domestic independence, construction is well underway on the Stable Isotope Production and Research Center (SIPRC) at ORNL. Slated to begin phased operation in 2028, this state-of-the-art facility will scale up the national isotope supply chain.

To maximize the efficiency of this massive expansion, ORNL is integrating artificial intelligence, machine learning, and advanced automation into enrichment operations and processing chemistry.

Beyond production, ORNL continues to steward the National Stable Isotope Repository and by collaborating with universities, other National Laboratories, and private industry, the program is actively training and developing a highly skilled domestic workforce to sustain America's competitive edge for decades to come.

For information on the availability of isotopically enriched stable isotopes, please contact the DOE National Isotope Development Center (NIDC) at  https://www.isotopes.gov.