Cobalt-60 is an important radioactive source and China National Nuclear Corporation is the only domestic manufacturer.

Cobalt-60, with the nuclide symbol ⁶⁰Co, is one of the isotopes of the metallic element cobalt. The isotopes of cobalt include cobalt-56, cobalt-57, cobalt-58, cobalt-59, and cobalt-60. Among them, only cobalt-59 is non-radioactive and exists stably in nature. The other several are radioactive and need to be synthesized. As a radioactive isotope of cobalt, cobalt-60 has a half-life of 5.27 years. It can emit gamma rays through beta decay and has strong penetrating ability.

Cobalt-60 is extremely radioactive and is a highly toxic nuclide. If exposed to the human body, it can cause hair loss in mild cases, and can cause blood system diseases or even death in severe cases. Cobalt-60 needs to be stored in a sealed lead container, and special protective clothing needs to be worn during operation. Cobalt-60 can be used as a gamma radiation source, a beta radiation source, a gamma isotope heat source, etc. Among them, the gamma radiation source is the main application field of cobalt-60 and can be widely used in industry, agriculture, medical and other fields.

According to the “Cobalt-60 Industry In-depth Market Research and Investment Strategy Suggestions Report 2022-2026” released by the Industrial Research Center, in In the agricultural field, cobalt-60 can be used in mutation breeding, pest control, food preservation, etc.; in the industrial field, cobalt-60 can be used in non-destructive testing, disinfection and sterilization, material modification, waste treatment, etc., and is penetrating Strong, no residue, low energy consumption and other advantages; in the medical field, cobalt-60 can be used in the treatment of malignant tumors.

There are various preparation processes for cobalt-60. Using cobalt-59 as raw material and forming it through neutron impact in a nuclear reactor is the only method for industrial production of cobalt-60. Cobalt-59 exists in nature, which is commonly referred to as metallic cobalt. During the production process, metallic cobalt is used as raw material, processed and formed, then plated with nickel for protection, pre-processed, made into a target, and put into a nuclear reactor for appropriate time to be irradiated. Get Cobalt-60. Since the production of cobalt-60 requires nuclear reactors, the number of global cobalt-60 producers is small and the market concentration is high.

In our country and overseas markets, the main cobalt-60 manufacturers are Canadian Nordion, Russian Isotope Joint Stock Company (JSC Isotope), and China National Nuclear Corporation Tongxing. The three companies monopolize about 80% of the global cobalt-60 market, among which , Nordian’s market share reached more than 60%. Nordian processes cobalt-60 materials in Canada’s Bruce Power nuclear reactor; Russian Isotope Joint Stock Company is a subsidiary of the Russian State Atomic Energy Corporation (Rosatom); the largest shareholder of CNNC Tongxing is China Tongxing, a subsidiary of CNNC, using CNNC The nuclear reactor of Qinshan Third Nuclear Power Co., Ltd. is produced.

Cobalt-60 manufacturing has high technical barriers, and it mainly includes two categories of products: industrial cobalt-60 and medical cobalt-60. Among them, medical cobalt-60 is more difficult to manufacture. Industrial cobalt-60 can be used in the sterilization fields of industry, agriculture and medical supplies, while medical cobalt-60 is mainly used in the field of radiotherapy of malignant tumors. In the early days, my country’s demand for cobalt-60 relied entirely on imports. In 2010, CNNC teamed up with other units to achieve industrial cobalt-60 production; in 2019, my country’s first set of domestic medical cobalt-60 radioactive sources independently developed by CNNC started trial production in 2020 It has been installed on gamma knife equipment in many hospitals.

Industry analysts said that the global cobalt-60 market value is expected to reach approximately US$600 million by 2026, from 2022 to 2026 The average annual compound growth rate will be around 5.6%. In my country’s cobalt-60 market, industrial cobalt-60 still occupies a dominant position, with a share of more than 85% in 2021. my country’s industrial cobalt-60 market is not yet saturated, and there is still room for growth. At the same time, the demand for medical cobalt-60 is growing rapidly. Overall, my country’s cobalt-60 industry has broad prospects for development.