Selective permeation of plutonium(IV) through supported liquid membrane containing 2-ethylhexyl 2-ethylhexyl phosphonic acid as ion carrier

The selective transport of plutonium across supported liquid membrane using an indigenously synthesized 2-ethylhexyl 2-ethylhexyl phosphonic acid (KSM-17, equivalent to PC 88A) dissolved in dodecane as carrier has been investigated in this work. Laminar type polypropylene hydrophobic microporous membranes were used as solid supports. Transport experiments were carried out to evaluate the effect of varied hydrodynamic and chemical compositions of the system, i.e., stirring speed, carrier concentration, anionic composition (e.g. SO²⁻₄, NO⁻₃, PO³⁻₄, ClO⁻₄, Cl⁻) and acidity of source phase (SP) solution. Transport rates of plutonium from SP solutions of different anionic composition followed the order: ClO⁻₄>NO⁻₃>Cl⁻>SO²⁻₄>PO³⁻₄. Selective permeability of plutonium was observed in the presence of several cationic impurities such as Al, B, Be, Ca, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mg, Mn, Ni, Pb, Si, Zn, Ce, Dy, Eu, Gd and Sm. Using this technique, separation of plutonium from laboratory analytical waste was accomplished with an average flux 8.94×10⁻⁶ mol m⁻² s⁻¹ and with an enrichment factor greater than 2. The product solution obtained from this process was in oxalate medium with negligible contamination from other cationic and anionic impurities. From this solution, plutonium was precipitated as Pu-oxalate for further processing. Reusability of the membrane support was found to be satisfactory.     

Adsorption behavior of Me2-CA-BTP/SiO2-P adsorbent toward MA(III) and Ln(III) in nitrate solution

A porous Me₂-CA-BTP/SiO₂-P adsorbent was prepared to separate MA(III) from Ln(III) in high level liquid waste (HLLW). The adsorption behavior of Me₂-CA-BTP/SiO₂-P toward ²⁴¹Am(III) and Ln(III) in 0.01 M HNO₃-NaNO₃ solution was studied. Me₂-CA-BTP/SiO₂-P showed high adsorption and selectivity toward ²⁴¹Am(III) over Ln(III) fission products with the separation factor (SF) reaching to 557, 2355, 1952, 1082, 214, 105, 86, 14 for Y, La, Ce, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd and Dy respectively in 0.01 M HNO₃-0.99 M NaNO₃ solution. The adsorption kinetics of both Dy(III) and Eu(III) on Me₂-CA-BTP/SiO₂-P was studied and followed pseudo-second-order rate equation indicating chemical sorption as the rate-limiting step of the adsorption, and the adsorption isotherm of Dy(III) and Eu(III) matched better with the Langmuir isotherm than the Freundlich isotherm with the adsorption amount around 0.22 and 0.20 mmol/g respectively. Thermodynamic study revealed that the adsorption of both Dy(III) and Eu(III) on Me₂-CA-BTP/SiO₂-P was spontaneous and endothermic processes with a positive entropy at 298, 308, 313 K.     

Simultaneous production and separation of no-carrier-added 111In, 109Cd from alpha particle induced silver target

A natural silver foil was bombarded by 30 MeV α-particles which produced ¹¹¹In, ¹⁰⁹Cd and ^106mAg in the target matrix. ¹¹¹In and ¹⁰⁹Cd were separated from the Ag target matrix employing ion-exchange chromatography and liquid–liquid extraction (LLX). In the chromatographic separation, the active solution containing the NCA products were adsorbed in the column containing Dowex 50 and were eluted with HNO₃. Bulk silver and ¹⁰⁹Cd were sequentially eluted with 1 M HNO₃. After complete elution of ¹⁰⁹Cd and the bulk, ¹¹¹In was eluted with 1.5 M HNO₃. In the LLX, the NCA ¹¹¹In was extracted to 1 % HDEHP (di-2(ethylhexyl)phosphoric acid) from 10^?2 M HNO₃ solution, leaving cadmium and bulk silver quantitatively in the aqueous phase. The NCA ¹⁰⁹Cd was separated from the bulk Ag by precipitating Ag as AgCl. NCA ¹¹¹In was stripped back quantitatively from HDEHP phase using 8 M HNO₃.     

Microwave-assisted extraction of rare earth elements from petroleum refining catalysts and ambient fine aerosols prior to inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry

A robust microwave-assisted acid digestion procedure followed by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) was developed to quantify rare earth elements (REEs) in fluidized-bed catalytic cracking (FCC) catalysts and atmospheric fine particulate matter (PM_2.5). High temperature (200 °C), high pressure (200 psig), acid digestion (HNO₃, HF and H₃BO₃) with 20 min dwell time effectively solubilized REEs from six fresh catalysts, a spent catalyst and PM_2.5. This method was also employed to measure 27 non-REEs including Na, Mg, Al, Si, K, Sc, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Ga, As, Se, Rb, Sr, Zr, Mo, Cd, Cs, Ba, Pb and U. Complete extraction of several REEs (Y, La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Tb, Dy and Er) required HF indicating that they were closely associated with the aluminosilicate structure of the zeolite FCC catalysts. Internal standardization using ¹¹⁵In quantitatively corrected non-spectral interferences in the catalyst digestate matrix. Inter-laboratory comparison using ICP-optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) and instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA) demonstrated the applicability of the newly developed analytical method for accurate analysis of REEs in FCC catalysts. The method developed for FCC catalysts was also successfully implemented to measure trace to ultra-trace concentrations of La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Gd, Eu and Dy in ambient PM_2.5 in an industrial area of Houston, TX.     

Adsorption of lanthanides(III) from aqueous solutions by fullerene black modified with di(2-ethylhexyl)phosphoric acid

Fullerene black (FB) - a product of electric arc graphite vaporization after extraction of fullerenes - was modified with the di(2-ethylhexyl)phosphoric acid (D2EHPA). The distribution of D2EHPA between FB and aqueous HNO₃ solutions has been studied. The effect of HNO₃ concentration in the aqueous phase and that of D2EHPA concentration in the sorbent phase on the adsorption of microquantities of La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, Yb, Lu, and Y nitrates from HNO₃ solutions by D2EHPA-modified FB are considered. The stoichiometry of the sorbed complexes has been determined by the slope analysis method. The efficiency of lanthanides’ adsorption increases with an increase in the element atomic number. A considerable synergistic effect has been observed upon the addition of the neutral bidentate tetraphenylmethylenediphosphine dioxide ligand to D2EHPA in the sorbent phase.      

Determination of dysprosium,europium, samarium and gadolinium in yttrium oxide of high purity by means of neutron activation analysis

Radioactivation analysis is the only method which allows the determination of individual rare earth element impurities in rare earth elements of high purity. The determination of dysprosium, europium, samarium and gadolinium in yttrium oxide is complicated by the short half-life of¹⁶⁵Dy (138 min.) and by the difficulty of separating traces of these elements from the matrix. A chromatographic method has been developed, for the separation of traces of Dy, Eu, Sm and Gd from ytrium, on a column packed with anion exchangerAV-17, by means of elution with 0.1N and 0.3M solutions of EDTA-sodium salt, followed by the separation of the mixture of the rare earth impurities on a microcolumn of cation exchangerKU-2, using a 0.17M solution of ammonium α-hydroxyisobutyrate as the eluent. The sensitivity of the determination of Dy, in the case of irradiating 10 mg of Y₂O₃ with a flux of 1.2·10¹³ n·cm⁻²·sec⁻¹ for 5 min. was 1·10⁻⁷%; the corresponding values for Sm, Eu and Gd, when irradiating a 100 mg sample of Y₂O₃ for 20 hours with the same flux, were 2·10⁻⁷%, 1·10⁻⁸% and 5·10⁻⁶%, respectively.     

Syntheses, crystal structures and vibrational spectra of KLn(SO4)2·H2O (Ln=La, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Dy)

The potassium lanthanide double sulphates KLn(SO₄)₂·H₂O (Ln=La, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Dy) were obtained by evaporation of aqueous reaction mixtures of rare earth (III) sulphates and potassium thiocyanate at 298 K. X-ray single-crystal investigations show that KLn(SO₄)₂·H₂O (Ln=Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Dy) crystallise monoclinically (Ln=Sm: P2₁/c, Z=4, a=10.047(1), b=8.4555(1), c=10.349(1) Å, wR2=0.060, R1=0.024, 945 reflections, 125 parameters) while KLa(SO₄)₂·H₂O adopts space group P3₂21 (Z=3, a=7.1490(5), c=13.2439(12) Å, wR2=0.038, R1=0.017, 695 reflections, 65 parameters). The coordination environment of the lanthanide ions in KLn(SO₄)₂·H₂O is different in the case of the Nd/Sm/Gd and the Eu/Dy compounds, respectively. In the first case the Ln atoms are nine-fold coordinated in contrast to the latter where the Ln ions are eight-fold coordinated by oxygen atoms. The vibrational spectra of KLn(SO₄)₂·H₂O and the UV-vis reflection spectra of KEu(SO₄)₂·H₂O and KNd(SO₄)₂·H₂O are also reported.     

Determination of rare earth elements in seawater by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry with off-line column preconcentration using 2,6-diacetylpyridine functionalized Amberlite XAD-4

An off-line column preconcentration technique using a micro-column of 2,6 diacetylpyridine functionalized Amberlite XAD-4 with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) as a means of detection has been developed. The aim of the method was to determine rare earth elements (REEs) (La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, Yb and Lu) in seawater. Sample solutions (2–10 mL) were passed through the column which was then washed with ultra-pure water to remove residual matrix. The adsorbed cations on the resin were eluted by using 2 mL of 0.1 mol L⁻¹ HNO₃ containing 10 ng mL⁻¹ indium as an internal standard. The eluent was analyzed for the metal concentrations using ICP-MS. Sample pH as well as the sample and eluent flow rates were optimized. The sorption capacity of resin was determined by the batch process, by equilibrating 0.05 g of the resin with solutions of 50 mL of 25 mg L⁻¹ of individual metal ions for 4 h at pH 6.0 at 26 °C. The sorption capacities for the resin were found to range between 47.3 μmol g⁻¹ (for Lu) and 136.7 μmol g⁻¹ (for Gd). Limits of detection (3σ), without any preconcentration, ranged from 2 ng L⁻¹ to 10.3 ng L⁻¹ (for Tm and Lu respectively). The proposed method was applied to the determination of REEs in seawater and tap water samples.     

Studies on mixed ligand complexes of samarium(III), europium(III) and dysprosium(III) with 1-nitroso-2-naphthol and trioctylphosphine oxide

The extraction behavior of Sm(III), Eu(III) and Dy(III) with 1-nitroso-2-naphthol (HA) and trioctylphosphine oxide (TOPO) in methyl isobutyl ketone (MIBK) from aqueous NaClO₄ solutions in the pH range 4–9 at 0.1M ionic strength has been studied. The equilibrium concentrations of Sm and Dy were measured using their short-lived neutron activation products,¹⁵⁵Sm and^165mDy, respectively. In the case of Eu, the concentrations were assayed through the^152,154Eu radiotracer. The distribution ratios of these elements were determined as a function of pH, 1-nitroso-2-naphthol and TOPO concentrations. The extractions of Sm, Eu and Dy were found to be quantitative with MIBK solutions in the pH range 5.9–7.5, 5.6–7.5 and 5.8–7.5, respectively. Quantitative extraction of Eu was also obtained between pH 5.8 and 8.8 with chloroform solutions. The results show that these lanthanides (Ln) are extracted as LnA₃ chelates with 1-nitroso-2-naphthol alone, and in the presence of TOPO as LnA₃(TOPO) and LnA₃(TOPO)₂ adducts. The extraction constants and the adduct formation constants of these complexes have been calculated.     

Rapid synthesis of ultrafine K2Ln2Ti3O10 (Ln=La, Nd, Sm, Gd, Dy) series and its photoactivity

Ultrafine-layered lanthanon titanates K₂Ln₂Ti₃O₁₀ (Ln=La, Nd, Sm, Gd, Dy) were fabricated at relatively low temperature by a stearic acid method (SAM). The obtained products were characterized by FT-IR, X-ray diffractometer, DTA-TG, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and BET experiments. The photocatalytic activity of the obtained products was studied and was compared with that of solid-state reaction (SSR) using photodecomposition of methyl orange as the model system. Results showed that by using SAM, the fabricating temperature was lowered (from 1100 to 800 °C) and the reacting time was shortened (from at least 11-2 h). Comparing with the product of traditional SSR, the particle size of K₂Ln₂Ti₃O₁₀ synthesized by SAM is smaller, BET surface area is higher (more than 16.97 m²/g), and photoreactivity is better. It was very interesting to find the difference in d(002) of obtained K₂Ln₂Ti₃O₁₀ for Ln=La, Nd, Sm, Gd, Dy separately and the photoactivity of K₂Ln₂Ti₃O₁₀ is strongly dependent on lanthanide, increasing in the sequence of La<Sm<Nd<Gd <Dy. A possible reason was put forward.     

Separation of neptunium, plutonium, americium and curium from uranium with di-(2-ethylhexyl)-phosphoric acid (HDEHP) for radiometric and ICP-MS analysis

The possibility of using di-(2-ethylhexyl)-phosphoric acid (HDEHP) in solvent extraction for the separation of neptunium, plutonium, americium and curium from large amounts of uranium was studied. Neptunium, plutonium, americium and curium (as well as uranium) were extracted from HNO₃, whereafter americium and curium were back-extracted with 5M HNO₃. Thereafter was neptunium back-extracted in 1M HNO₃ containing hydroxylamine hydronitrate. Finally, plutonium was back-extracted in 3M HCl containing Ti(III). The method separates²³⁸Pu from²⁴¹Am for α-spectroscopy. For ICP-MS analysis, the interferences from²³⁸U are eliminated: tailing from²³⁸U, for analysis of²³⁷Np, and the interference of²³⁸UH⁺ for analysis of²³⁹Pu. The method has been used for the analysis of actinides in samples from a spent nuclear fuel leaching and radionuclide transport experiment.     

CoLn dinuclear complexes (Ln = Gd,Tb, Dy,Ho and Er) as platforms for 1,5-dicyanamide-bridged tetranuclear Co2Ln2 complexes: A magneto-structural and theoretical study

Five acetate-diphenoxo triply-bridged Co^II-Ln^III complexes (Ln^III = Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er) of formula [Co(μ-L)(μ-Ac)Ln(NO₃)₂] and two diphenoxo doubly-bridged Co^II-Ln^III complexes (Ln^III = Gd, Tb) of formula [Co(H₂O)(μ-L)Ln(NO₃)₃]·S (S = H₂O or MeOH), were prepared in one pot reaction from the compartmental ligand N,N′,N′′-trimethyl-N,N′′-bis(2-hydroxy-3-methoxy-5-methylbenzyl)diethylene triamine (H₂L). The diphenoxo doubly-bridged Co^II-Ln^III complexes were used as platforms to obtain 1,5-dicyanamide-bridged tetranuclear Co^II-Ln^III complexes (Ln^III = Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er). All exhibit ferromagnetic interactions between the Co^II and Ln^III ions and in the case of the Gd^III complexes, the J_CoGd were estimated to be ∼+0.7 cm⁻¹. Compound 3 exhibits slow relaxation of the magnetization.     

Tris(2-ethylhexyl)phosphine oxide as an effective solvent mediator for constructing a serotonin-selective membrane electrode

A series of solvent mediators containing a phosphoryl (PO) group, such as tris(2-ethylhexyl)phosphate, bis(2-ethylhexyl) 2-ethylhexylphosphonate, 2-ethylhexyl bis(2-ethylhexyl)phosphinate, and tris(2-ethylhexyl)phosphine oxide, were used to construct serotonin-selective membrane electrodes. We found that replacing the alkoxy groups attached to phosphorus atoms in PO groups with alkyl groups strengthened the response of the electrode to serotonin, suppressing remarkably interference from inorganic cations, such as Na⁺. Thus, an electrode combining tris(2-ethylhexyl)phosphine oxide with an ion-exchanger, sodium tetrakis[3,5-bis(2-methoxyhexafluoro-2-propyl)phenyl]borate, gave a detection limit of 9 × 10⁻⁶ M with a slope of 55.2 mV per concentration decade in physiological saline containing 150 mM NaCl and 10 mM NaH₂PO₄/Na₂HPO₄ (pH 7.4). This is the best detection limit of any serotonin-selective electrode developed to date. The selectivity of this electrode for serotonin was over 10³ times that for inorganic cations, such as Na⁺ and K⁺, and lipophilic quaternary ammonium ions, such as acetylcholine and (C₂H₅)₄N⁺. Using the electrode, we measured the amount of serotonin released from platelets and found that the results agreed well with those obtained by a conventional fluorimetric assay of serotonin.     

Determination of Y,Sm, Eu,Gd, Dy,Ho, Er in high purity terbium oxide by ICP-AES

Inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES) was employed to determine Y, Sm, Eu, Gd, Dy, Ho and Er in high purity terbium oxide. Terbium oxide was dissolved in 0.5 mol/l HNO₃ and nebulized into the plasma generated by a 56 MHz RF generator at 1.5 kW output power. Using a Jobin-Yvon 1-m Czenry-Turner high resolution, high dispersion scanning monochromator, lines mutually interference-free as well as free of interference from the matrix Tb were chosen for the seven analytes. A set of standards containing the analytes in the concentration range 0.01–1.0 gmg/ml with 1 mg/ml Tb was used for calibration. It was necessary to apply background correction to the gross analyte line intensities in order to obtain linear calibration plots for the analytes.     

Preconcentration and determination of rare-earth elements in iron-rich water samples by extraction chromatography and plasma source mass spectrometry (ICP-MS)

A 100-fold preconcentration procedure based on rare-earth elements (REEs) separation from water samples with an extraction chromatographic column has been developed. The separation of REEs from matrix elements (mainly Fe, alkaline and alkaline-earth elements) in water samples was performed loading the samples, previously acidified to pH 2.0 with HNO₃, in a 2 ml column preconditioned with 20 ml 0.01 M HNO₃. Subsequently, REEs were quantitatively eluted with 20 ml 7 M HNO₃. This solution was evaporated to dryness and the final residue was dissolved in 10 ml 2% HNO₃ containing 1 μg l⁻¹ of cesium used as internal standard. The solution was directly analysed by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), using ultrasonic nebulization, obtaining quantification limits ranging from 0.05 to 0.10 ng l⁻¹. The proposed method has been applied to granitic waters running through fracture fillings coated by iron and manganese oxy-hydroxides in the area of the Ratones (Cáceres, Spain) old uranium mine.     

Structure and magnetic properties of RE2Cu2Cd

The ternary intermetallic compounds RE₂Cu₂Cd (RE=Y, Sm, Gd-Tm, Lu) were synthesized by induction-melting of the elements in sealed tantalum tubes. The samples were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction. The structure of Gd₂Cu₂Cd was refined from single crystal X-ray diffractometer data: Mo₂FeB₂ type, space group P4/mbm, a=756.2(3), c=380.2(3) pm, wR2=0.0455, 321 F² values, 12 variables. The structures are 1:1 intergrowth variants of slightly distorted CsCl and AlB₂ related slabs of compositions RECd and RECu₂. The copper and cadmium atoms build up two-dimensional [Cu₂Cd] networks (257 pm Cu-Cu and 301 pm Cu-Cd in Gd₂Cu₂Cd) which are bonded to the rare earth atoms via short RE-Cu contacts (290 pm in Gd₂Cu₂Cd). Temperature dependent susceptibility measurements of RE₂Cu₂Cd with RE=Gd, Tb, Dy, and Tm show experimental magnetic moments which are close to the free RE³⁺ ion values. The four compounds show ferromagnetic ordering at T_C=116.7(2), 86.2(3), 48.4(1), and 14.5(1) K, respectively, as confirmed by heat capacity measurements. Dy₂Cu₂Cd shows a spin reorientation at T_N=16.9(1) K.     

Verbindungen der Seltenerdelemente mit α-Benzoinoxim, 1. Mitt.

Zusammenfassung Substanzen der ZusammensetzungLnCl₃·3H₂ Box ^* (Ln=La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Y) und LaBr₃·3 H₂ Box wurden isoliert und durch Thermoanalyse, IR-Absorptionsspektren und Röntgenstreuung charakterisiert.

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Compounds of the rare earth elements with -benzoin oxime

Compounds of compositionLnCl₃·3 H₂ Box ^* (Ln=La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Y) and LaBr₃·3H₂ Box were isolated and characterized by thermoanalysis, IR spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction.

     

Interference by neutron induced second order nuclear reaction in activation analysis of rare earths

In determining the trace impurities existing in high-purity rare earth samples by the neutron activation analysis, there are much interference due to nuclides induced from neutron induced second order nuclear reaction. This paper presents the degree of interference calculated over the ranges of irradiation time from 10⁵ to 10⁷ sec and of thermal-neutron flux from 1·10¹² to 1·10¹⁵ n·cm⁻²·sec⁻¹. According to the results of these calculations, degree of interference under the neutron irradiation condition for 288 hrs in the thermal-neutron flux of 3·10¹³n·cm⁻²·sec⁻¹ is concluded to be 6.4·10⁶ ppm Gd in Eu, 2.2·10⁴ ppm Sm in Eu, 1.9·10⁴ ppm Ho in Dy, 1.1·10³ ppm Eu in Sm, 1.1·10² ppm Ce in La and 1.1·10 ppm Tb in Gd, respectively. Especially, the Gd determination in the Eu target is extremely affected by¹⁵³Gd formed from the¹⁵¹Eu (n, γ) reaction. On the contrary, this reaction is effective in producing¹⁵³Gd activity.     

Synergistic extraction behavior of samarium(III), europium(III) and dysprosium(III) with 1-nitroso-2-naphthol and 1,10-phenanthroline

The equilibrium extraction behavior of Sm(III), Eu(III) and Dy(III) from aqueous NaClO₄ solutions in the pH range of 4–9 at 0.1 M ionic strength into organic solutions of 1-nitroso-2-naphthol (HA) and 1,10-phenanthroline (Phen) has been studied. The equilibrium concentrations of Eu were assayed through the 344 keV photopeak of the¹⁵²Eu radiotracer used. The concentrations of Sm and Dy were measured by irradiating one mL portions of the organic extract and analyzing the 104 and 108 keV photopeaks of the short-lived neutron activation products,¹⁵⁵Sm and^165mDy, respectively. Quantitative extraction of Eu with 5×10^–2 M HA alone was obtained in the pH range of 6.7–7.8 with n-butanol, 7.4–8.5 with chloroform, 8.0–8.7 with ethyl acetate, 7.7–8.5 with isoamyl alcohol and 6.1–8.0 with methyl isobutyl ketone (MIBK). But, Eu was extracted only to a maximum of 78% and 83% in the pH range of 8.3–8.9 and 7.4–8.1 with carbon tetrachloride and xylene, respectively. The extraction of Sm and Dy were found quantitative in the pH range of 6.3–7.0 and 6.6–7.1, respectively, with 5×10^–2 M HA alone in MIBK solutions. The synergistic extraction of Eu was quantitative in the pH range of 6.6–9.8 with chloroform, 7.8–8.9 with ethyl acetate, 7.7–8.5 with isoamyl alcohol and 6.0–9.6 with MIBK when 1×10^–2 M each of HA and Phen were employed. Sm and Dy were quantitatively extracted into MIBK solutions containing 5×10^–2 M each of HA and Phen in the pH range 6.0–7.5 and 6.1–7.5, respectively. The distribution ratios of these lanthanides (Ln) were determined as a function of pH, and HA and Phen concentrations. The analysis of the data suggests that these Ln are extracted as LnA₃ chelates when HA alone is used. In the presence of HA and Phen, both LnA₃(Phen) and LnA₃(Phen)₂ adducts are formed only in the MIBK system while LnA₃(Phen) complexes are the predominant ones in all other solvent systems studied. The extraction constants and the adduct formation constants of these complexes have been calculated.     

Microwave-induced combustion of crude oil for further rare earth elements determination by USN–ICP-MS

A procedure for light and heavy crude oils digestion by microwave-induced combustion (MIC) is proposed for the first time for further rare earth elements (REE) determination by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) equipped with an ultrasonic nebulizer (USN). Samples of crude oil (API density of 10.8–23.5, up to 250 mg) were inserted in polycarbonate capsules and combusted using 20 bar of oxygen and 50 μL of 6 mol L⁻¹ ammonium nitrate as igniter. Nitric acid solutions (1–14.4 mol L⁻¹) were evaluated for analyte absorption and a reflux step was applied after combustion (5 min of microwave irradiation at 1400 W) in order to achieve better analyte recoveries. Accuracy was evaluated using a spiked sample and also by comparison of results obtained by microwave-assisted digestion combined to ultraviolet radiation (MW–UV) and by neutron activation analysis (NAA). Using 3 mol L⁻¹ HNO₃, quantitative recoveries (better than 97%) were obtained for all analytes. Blank values were always negligible. Agreement was higher than 96% for La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, Yb, Lu and Y by comparison of results with those obtained by MW–UV and by NAA (only for La, Ce, Nd, Sm, and Yb). Residual carbon content in digests using MIC was always below 1%. As an advantage over conventional procedures for crude oil digestion, using MIC, it was possible to use diluted acid as absorbing solution, obtaining better limits of detection and avoiding interferences in REE determination by USN–ICP-MS.