METHOD OF CONCENTRATING OXYGEN ISOTOPE AND CONCENTRATION APPARATUS

摘要

A method in which ozone is diluted with a gas and then ozone containing stable oxygen isotopes ¹⁷O and ¹⁸O is stably and selectively photodecomposed into oxygen while maintaining a low ozone concentration even under such conditions that a rare gas solidifies, whereby oxygen enriched with ¹⁷O and ¹⁸O is efficiently and continuously obtained. In an ozone photodecomposition step (13), a gas mixture comprising CF₄ and ozone is irradiated with light to selectively decompose into oxygen an ozone isotopomer which contains specific oxygen isotopes and is contained in the ozone. The resultant gas mixture is collected in a collection step (31). Thereafter, in an oxygen-isotope concentration step (14), the oxygen contained in this gas mixture is separated from the undecomposed ozone and CF₄ by, e.g., low-temperature distillation. Thus, oxygen enriched with the oxygen isotopes is separated.