METHOD AND EQUIPMENT FOR THE ENRICHMENT OF HEAVY OXYGEN ISOTOPES

摘要

A method for the enrichment of heavy oxygen isotopes which comprises the first distillation step of feeding both ozone and oxygen generated in an ozonizer (12) into a distillation column (13) filled with a diluent gas and conducting the separation into oxygen and an ozone/diluent gas mixture, the photodecomposition step of introducing the ozone/diluent gas mixture from the bottom of the distillation column into a photoreaction cell (14) and irradiating the mixture with a laser to decompose selectively ozone containing heavy oxygen isotopes, the second distillation step of returning both oxygen containing heavy oxygen isotopes and undecomposed ozone to the distillation column and conducting the separation into oxygen and an ozone/diluent gas mixture, the step of liquefying oxygen containing heavy oxygen isotopes in a condenser (16) provided on the top of the distillation column and withdrawing product oxygen, and the third distillation step of conducting the separation of oxygen and a diluent gas and in which the first to third distillation steps are conducted in one distillation column, namely distillation column (13).