Solid/liquid separation of flocculated suspensions

Solid-liquid separation operations leading to the concentration and isolation of fine particles dispersed in liquids are important in the chemical and mineral processing industries. In spite of this, the procedures available for the prediction of equipment performance remain crude. Almost all major mineral and chemical processing companies now have a clear priority in R&D budgets to develop new approaches to waste minimization; a major part of the problem faced by these industries relates to the effect of management of waste slurries. The processes that manage final waste slurries are often classical “end-of-pipe” solutions. One of the key aims of the present broad program is to understand how to manipulate the structure of slurries within the process so that finally it is possible to engineer clear liquor and simultaneously manageable or tractable waste solids. The best way to process such wastes relies on understanding how to control the compressibility and viscosity of these materials.A generalized approach to understanding and prediction of solid-liquid separation methods based on the measurement of fundamental material properties is reviewed here. This is of value in designing more efficient methods and ultimately to optimizing the performance of solid-liquid separation methods and the selection of flocculants for any given slurry. The model identifies two key parameters, the compressional yield stress Py(φ) and the hindered settling factor r(φ) and laboratory test procedures for the direct measurement of both have been developed. The application of this model to a variety of thickening and filtration processes is demonstrated and a direct relationship between the model parameters and the conventional cake resistance as utilised by current filtration engineers is provided.     

Liquid/liquid extraction separation of hafnium with amberlite La-1 from zirconium and other elements in citric acid solutions

Hafnium (10–110 μg ml^?1) is quantitatively extracted at pH 4.5 from 0.01 M citric acid with 0.1 M Amberlite LA-1 in xylene; it can be stripped with 0.1 M perchloric acid and determined spectrophotometrically with xylenol orange at 540 nm. Hafnium can be separated from binary and multicomponent mixtures by selective extraction and back-extraction. The method is suitable for determining hafnium in zircon.     

Aerobic oxidation with N-hydroxyphthalimide catalysts in ionic liquid

N-Hydroxyphthalimide (NHPI)-catalyzed aerobic oxidations in the ionic liquids were examined for the first time. Both NHPI and its ionic derivative, 3-pyridinylmethyl-N-hydroxyphthalimide (Py-NHPI), were found to have better performance in the ionic liquid than in the conventional organic solvents for the aerobic oxidation of N-alkylamides to imides. On the other hand, Py-NHPI was found to be a much better catalyst than NHPI for the aerobic oxidation of benzylic compounds in the ionic liquid.     

用改进液相还原法制备炭载Pd催化剂

研究了用改进液相还原法制备用作直接甲酸燃料电池(DFAFC)的炭载Pd(Pd/C)阳极催化剂制备方法,研究发现在滴加还原剂NaBH4之前,在PdCl2溶液中滴加NaOH溶液后,制得的Pd/C催化剂中Pd粒子的平均粒径和相对结晶度均比不加NaOH的小.而且Pd粒子的平均粒径和相对结晶度与加入的NaOH溶液和PdCl2溶液的浓度比有关.在未加NaOH时制得的Pd/C催化剂中Pd粒子的平均粒径和相对结晶度分别为20.2 nm和6.29,当加入的NaOH溶液和PdCl2溶液的浓度比为10时得到的Pd粒子的平均粒径和相对结晶度适中,分别为6.7 nm和3.45,因此,制得的Pd/C催化剂对甲酸氧化的电催化活性和稳定性均要比其它NaOH溶液和PdCl2溶液的浓度比时制得的Pd/C催化剂要好.且该制备方法简单,具有潜在的应用前景.     

Confinement effect on the adsorption from a binary liquid system near liquid/liquid phase separation

The preferential adsorption of one component of a binary system at the inner surfaces of mesoporous silica glasses was studied in a wide composition range at temperatures close to liquid/liquid phase separation. Confinement effects on the adsorption were investigated by using three controlled-pore glass (CPG-10) materials of different mean pore size (10 to 50 nm). For the experimental system (2-butoxyethanol+water), which exhibits an upper miscibility gap, strong preferential adsorption of water occurs, as the coexistence curve is approached at bulk compositions, at which water is the minority component. In this strong adsorption regime the area-related surface excess amount of adsorbed water decreases with decreasing pore width, while the shift in the volume-related mean composition of the pore liquid shows an opposite trend, i.e., greatest deviation from bulk composition occurring in the most narrow pores. A simple mean-field lattice model of a liquid mixture confined by parallel walls is adopted to rationalize these experimental findings. This model reproduces the main findings of the confinement effect on the adsorption near liquid/liquid phase separation.     

Studies on Liquid/liquid Extraction of Copper Ion with Room Temperature Ionic Liquid

Room temperature ionic liquids are regarded as “Green solvents” for their nonvolatile and thermally stable properties. They are employed to replace traditional volatile organic solvents in organic synthesis, solvent extraction, and electrochemistry. In this work, a water immiscible room temperature ionic liquid, 1‐butyl‐3‐methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate [C₄mim][PF₆], was used as an alternative solvent for liquid/liquid extraction of copper ions. Metal chelators, including dithizone, 8‐hydroxyquinoline, and 1‐(2‐pyridylazo)‐2‐naphthol, were employed to form neutral metal‐chelate complexes with copper ions so that copper ions were extracted from aqueous solution into [C₄mim][PF₆]. The parameters that affect the extraction of copper ions with this biphasic system were investigated. The extraction behavior in this novel biphasic system is shown to be consistent with that of traditional solvents. For example, the extraction with this biphasic system is strongly pH dependent. So, the extraction efficiency of coppers ion from an aqueous phase can be manipulated by tailoring the pH value of the extraction system. Hence, the extraction, separation and preconcentraction of copper ions can be accomplished by controlling the pH value of the extraction system. It appears that the use of ionic liquid as an alternate solvent system in liquid/liquid extraction of copper ions is very promising.     

Two-dimensional liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry/mass spectrometry separation of water-soluble metabolites

Off-line two-dimensional liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry detection (2D-LC/MS-MS) was used to separate a set of metabolomic species. Water-soluble metabolites were extracted from Escherichia coli and Saccharomyces cerevisae cultures and were immediately analyzed using strong cation exchange (SCX)-hydrophilic interaction chromatography (HILIC). Metabolite mixtures are well-suited for multidimensional chromatography as the range of components varies widely with respect to polarity and chemical makeup. Some currently used methods employ two different separations for the detection of positively and negatively ionized metabolites by mass spectrometry. Here we developed a single set of chromatographic conditions for both ionization modes and were able to detect a total of 141 extracted metabolite species, with an overall peak capacity of ca. 2500. We show that a single two-dimensional separation method is sufficient and practical when a pair or more of unidimensional separations are used in metabolomics.     

Liquid–liquid phase separation in aqueous solutions of poly(ethylene glycol) methacrylate homopolymers

Here, the liquid–liquid phase separation (LLPS) in aqueous solutions containing poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) methacrylate homopolymers is reported for the first time. In this study, the thermoresponse of concentrated solutions of DEGMA₆₀ (two ethylene glycol, EG, groups) TEGMA₇₁ (three EG groups), OEGMA300_x (4.5 in average EG groups) of varying molar masses (MM), and OEGMA500₂₈ (nine in average EG groups) is discussed. Interestingly, the temperature of LLPS (T_LLPS) is controlled by the length of the PEG side chain, the MM of the OEGMA300_x and the polymer concentration. More specifically, the transition temperature decreases with: (i) Decrease in the length of the PEG side chain, (ii) increase in MM of the OEGMA300_x, and increase in concentration. In addition, LLPS is also observed in mixtures of OEGMA300_x with Pluronic® F127. In conclusion, these systems present a thermally induced LLPS, with the transition temperature being finely tuned to room temperature when DEGMA is used. These systems find potential use in numerous applications, varying from purification to “water-in-water” emulsions.     

Ionic liquid silver salt complexes for propene/propane separation

Properties of the room-temperature liquid complex salt [Ag(propene)(x)][Tf(2)N] have been studied to probe its suitability for acting as active separation layer in immobilised liquid membrane (ILM) concepts for propane/propene separation. The pressure/temperature range of complex formation has been determined and the thermal properties of Ag[Tf(2)N] and [Ag(propene)(x)][Tf(2)N] have been studied by DSC (differential scanning calorimetry) and TGA (thermogravimetric analysis) measurements. Pressure dependent measurements of solubility and diffusivity showed that the observed membrane selectivity is dominated by the solubility selectivity. The self-diffusion coefficient of propene is always smaller compared to propane as propene is temporarily bound to the silver ion in the [Ag(propene)(x)][Tf(2)N] ionic liquid.     

Stimulant sensitive flocculation and consolidation for improved solid/liquid separation

A novel method of flocculation resulting in both rapid sedimentation and low sediment moisture is described. It relies on changing the inter-particle forces from repulsive to attractive (aggregation and fast settling results) and then back to repulsive (densification of sediment then occurs). The change in inter-particle force is controlled by a stimulus such as pH or temperature. The technique is demonstrated without polymer using the isoelectric point and pH as the stimulus. The polyelectrolyte chitosan produces faster sedimentation and clearer supernatants as a pH sensitive flocculant. Methylcellulose is an effective temperature sensitive flocculant. The sediment bed volumes can be reduced by between 10 and 45% depending upon the conditions which, as yet, have not been fully optimized.     

Liquid chromatography separation of organic acidic compounds

Summary The influence of ionic compounds added to an aqueous methanol eluent on the retention behaviour of sulphonic, carboxylic acids and of phenols is demonstrated. Absolute and relative retentions can be optimized by changing the water-methanol concentrations. The optimum conditions for the separation of technical important sulphonic and carboxylic acids (dye intermediates) are shown.     

Liquid chromatographic separation of the thyroid hormones

The liquid Chromatographic separation of 3,3',5-triiodothyronine, 3,3',5'-triiodothyronine, and thyroxine with a nonpolar stationary phase was studied as a function of pH, temperature, organic content of the mobile phase, and ionic strength using aqueous phosphate—acetonitrile, aqueous phosphate—methanol, and aqueous phosphate— n-propanol mobile phase systems. It was demonstrated that the quality of the thyroid hormone separations, as determined by normalized peak capacity values, was unchanged with temperature, remained relatively constant with increasing ionic strength, and was affected to the greatest extent by changes in pH and organic modifier content of the mobile phase. Chromatographic behavior of the compounds studied as a function of these variables was found to be consistent with existing Chromatographic theory and/or empirical observations. Recommended conditions are aqueous phosphate—methanol mobile phase, pH 2–5 (aqueous portion), and high temperature (60–70°C).     

High-performance liquid chromatographic separation of cobalamins

Physiological cobalamins were separated by means of high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Optimal conditions for elution of methylcobalamin, adenosylcobalamin, hydroxycobalamin and cyanocobalamin were determined. Excellent separation and resolution of these physiological cobalamins by HPLC were achieved. In addition, several cobalamin analogues were also studied and shown to be separable from the physiological forms. HPLC provides a rapid, sensitive, reproducible means of characterizing physiological cobalamins.     

Cationic flocculants carrying hydrophobic functionalities: applications for solid/liquid separation

The flocculation behaviors of three series of polycations with narrow molecular weight distributions carrying hydrophobic substituents on their backbones [poly(N-vinylbenzyl-N,N,N-trimethylammonium chloride), poly(N-vinylbenzyl-N,N-dimethyl-N-butylammonium chloride), and poly(N-vinylbenzylpyridinium chloride)] were investigated in dispersions of monodisperse polystyrene latexes and kaolin. Apparently, the charge density of the polycations decreases with increasing substituent hydrophobicity and increasing molecular weight of the polyelectrolytes. The necessary amount of flocculant for phase separation in dispersions with high substrate surface charge densities increases with increasing hydrophobicity of the polyelectrolyte. Nevertheless, the introduction of hydrophobic functionalities is beneficial, resulting in a substantial broadening of the range between the minimum and maximum amounts of flocculant necessary for efficient flocculation (flocculation window). An increase in ionic strength supports this effect. When the substrate has a low charge density, the hydrophobic interactions play a much more significant role in the flocculation process. Here, the minimum efficient doses remained the same for all three polyelectrolytes investigated, but the width of the flocculation window increased as the polycation hydrophobicity and the molecular weight increased. The necessary amount of flocculant increased with an increase in particle size at constant solid content of the dispersion, as well as with a decreasing number of particles at a constant particle size.     

Liquid phase CO+H2 reactions in presence of ruthenium catalysts

Several effects on the hydrogenation of carbon monoxide in propanol in presence of ruthenium catalysts are examined. The homologation reaction is not observed, only propyl formate and propyl acetate are produced with any ruthenium catalyst. The pH-value is an important parameter: in acid media, the yield of propyl formate is noticeably increased indicating different catalytic active species. The addition of cesium salts is also benefitial for formate formation. This is not the case when water is associated with propanol as solvent. Finally, no ethylene glycol is detected. The process is found to be homogeneous and methanol seems to be the precursor of methyl formate.

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Application of the ionic liquid Ammoeng 102 for aromatic/aliphatic hydrocarbon separation

This research has been focused on a study of the ionic liquid (IL) Ammoeng 102 (tetraalkyl ammonium sulfate) as solvent in liquid–liquid extraction. Experimental densities, speeds of sound, and refractive indices of Ammoeng 102 were studied in dependence on temperature at atmospheric pressure, both by conventional techniques. The thermal expansion coefficient of the IL was calculated from the density. Experimental (liquid + liquid) equilibria data (LLE) were obtained for mixtures of (Ammoeng 102 + heptane) from T = (293.15 to 343.15) K and (heptane + toluene + Ammoeng 102) at T = 298.15 K and atmospheric pressure. The experimental results for the binary and ternary systems were well correlated with the NRTL model. Selectivity and distribution ratio values, derived from the tie-line data, were presented. A comparison with other ILs and with sulfolane is included in order to analyze the best separation solvent in a liquid extraction process.     

Selective liquid phase hydrogenation of citral on Au/Fe2O3 catalysts

Gold supported on iron oxide hydrogenates citral (an alpha,beta-unsaturated aldehyde) to the corresponding alpha,beta-unsaturated alcohols (geraniol and nerol) with a selectivity higher than 95%.     

Bimetallic catalysts for hydrogenation in liquid phase

Activity and selectivity of bimetallic catalysts for two model reactions, citral hydrogenation in isopropanol and nitrate reduction in water, are reviewed on the basis of results obtained over bimetallic systems prepared in our laboratory, notably by redox techniques. The parent metal is generally a noble metal (Rh, Pd, Pt), while the additive is most often a non-noble metal (Ge, Sn, Cu…) whose oxidation state plays an important role in hydrogenation. Dramatic improvements of the selectivity to unsaturated alcohols are observed in citral hydrogenation with adequate deposition of the additive and pretreatment of the final catalyst. In nitrate reduction, the second metal essentially affects the first step of the process (conversion of nitrate to nitrite) but the global selectivity (limitation of NH₃ formation) may be significantly improved by tuning the couple parent metal–additive. Other aspects such as the choice of the support and the optimization of reaction conditions (temperature, pressure, pH effects in water) are also discussed.