ИСТИНА

The production of stable isotopes of light elements in Russia is going through a difficult time demanding answers to a number of questions. What nomenclature of stable isotopes is most in demand now and will be in demand in the future? Which method and what isotope separation processes will dominate in the coming years, and, accordingly, on what processes of isotope enrichment are to be bet on? It is from these positions and taking into account the worldwide trends that the report outlines the production of stable isotopes of five chemical elements - hydrogen, boron, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen and, in the main, such isotopes as D, 10B, 13C, 15N, 18O. The history of production of stable isotopes of light elements in the country, their need and the state of production at the present time, as well as an attempt to outline the expected prospects for the creation of production capacities in the near future are considered. In this connection, the competitiveness of physical and physicochemical methods for isotope separation, such as laser and gas centrifugal methods on the one hand, rectification and chemical isotope exchange on the other hand, is analyzed. As a result of identifying the merits and demerits of each of these processes, variants of the development of combined technological circuits for the enrichment of stable isotopes of light chemical elements are considered on their basis