Binary mixture of PC88A and TOPO as extractant for thorium(IV) from aqueous HNO3 and H2SO4 media

Synergism is observed in the extraction of thorium(IV) by the binary mixture of PC88A and TOPO in the range 0.1–2.5M HNO₃ solution. The increase in acidity decreases the synergistic effect. Antagonism is observed when the extraction is carried out in H₂SO₄ medium.     

Extraction of californium/III/ from aqueous pyrophosphate and tripolyphosphate solutions with D2EHPA

Extraction of californium/III/ with di-/–2-ethylhexyl/ phosphoric acid /D2EHPA/ in heptane from pyrophosphate media is almost quantitative between pH 4 and 5. From tripolyphosphate media, however, two to three extractions are needed in the pH range of 3–5 to isolate Cf³⁺ completely. Reextraction experiments show that 1M H₂SO₄ can back-extract Cf³⁺ completely while two to three reextractions with 5M HNO₃ can only separate californium/III/. Reverse phase partition chromatography experiments were performed to recover 300 g of californium/III/. From slope analysis of the extraction data the composition of the extracted species has been found to be Cf/H₂P₂O₇/A.HA and Cf/H₄P₃O₁₀/.A₂.2HA from pyrophosphate and tripolyphosphate solutions, respectively, where D2EHPA is abbreviated as /HA/₂.     

Extraction of Lanthanide Nitrates in Multicomponent Aqueous-Organic Two-Phase Systems with D2EHPA

Lanthanum nitrate distribution in three-component aqueous-organic systems with D2EHPA from acetate or acetic acid–acetate solutions has been studied, it has been shown that variation in sodium acetate concentration or composition of CH₃COONa–CH₃COOH mixture can affect metal distribution ratios. It has been found that extraction in three-component mixture of 1: 1: 1 composition (aqueous solution Ln(NO₃)₃ + CH₃COONa + CH₃COOH–D2EHPA in hexane–isopropyl alcohol) can provide lanthanide separation, which is dependent on the ratio of sodium acetate and acetic acid in aqueous phase and on D2EHPA concentration in organic phase. Lanthanide–lanthanum separation factors have been calculated for the extraction of lanthanide nitrates from acetic acid–acetate solutions.     

Separation and Recovery of Uranium and Plutonium from Oxalate Supernatant

The separation of uranium and plutonium from oxalate supernatant, obtained after precipitating plutonium oxalate, containing ~10 g/l uranium and 30–100 mg/l plutonium in 3M HNO₃ and 0.10–0.18M oxalic acid solution has been carried out. In one extraction step with 30% TBP in dodecane: ~92% of uranium and ~7% of Pu is extracted. The raffinate containing the remaining U and Pu is extracted with 0.2M CMPO+1.2 M TBP in dodecane and near complete extraction of both the metal ions is achieved. The metal ions are back extracted from organic phases using suitable stripping agents. The recovery of both the metal ions separately is >99%. The uranium species extracted into the TBP phase from the HNO₃+oxalic acid medium was identified as UO₂(NO₃)₂·2TBP.     

Extraction and stripping study of strontium ions across D2EHPA-TBP-kerosene oil based supported liquid membranes

A Sr ion transport study across D2EHPA-TBP kerosene oil based liquid membranes supported on microporous polypropylene film has been performed. The parameters studied were the effect of di(2-ethylhexyl)phosphoric acid (D2EHPA) and TBP concentration variation in the membrane liquid, HNO₃ concentration variation in the stripping phase and citric acid concentration variation in the feed solution. The optimum conditions of transport are 0.3 mol/dm³ D2EHPA, 0.1 mol/dm³ TBP, 0.01 mol/dm³ citric acid in feed and 2 mol/dm³ HNO₃ in the stripping phase. The mechanism of transport observed is counter-ion coupled transport. The coupling ions are protons. The maximum flux for Sr ion transport observed is 5.33·10^–5 mol·m^–2·s^–1 and maximum permeability under optimum conditions observed is 8.08·10^–11 m^–2·s^–1.     

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.      

Liquid — Liquid extraction of silver(I) by diphenyl-2-pyridylmethane in benzene from aqueous mineral acid — Thiocyanate solutions

Liquid — liquid extraction of Ag(I) by diphenyl-2-pyridylmethane (DPPM) in benzene from aqueous nitric and sulfuric acid solutions containing thiocyanate ions has been studied at ambient temperature (24±2 °C). The metal is extracted quantitatively from 0.01M HNO₃+0.02M KSCN; or 0.25M H₂SO₄+0.02M KSCN by 0.1M DPPM (optimum extraction conditions). Slope analysis indicates that two types of ion-pair complexes i.e. [(DPPMH)⁺·Ag(SCN) ₂ ^– ] and [(DPPMH) ₂ ⁺ ·Ag(SCN) ₃ ^2– ] are involved in the extraction process. Separation factors determined at optimum conditions reveal the separation of Ag(I) from Cs(I), Br(I), Mn(II), Co(II), Ni(II), Cu(II), Zn(II), Cd(II), Fe(III), Au(III) (from HNO₃ solution only), Cr(III), Hf(IV), Ta(V), Sn(IV) and Cr(VI). With the exception of thiosulfate, other complexing anions like ascorbate, acetate, citrate, oxalate do not hinder the extraction of Ag(I) under optimum conditions.     

Synergistic extraction of uranium from acidic sulfate leach liquor using D2EHPA mixed with TOPO

Uranium extraction from sulfate leach liquor acid by D₂EHPA and TOPO mixture in kerosene was investigated. The effect of different factors affecting the extraction mechanism such as sulfate leach liquor acid, D₂EHPA and TOPO concentrations and temperature have been studied. The mathematical treatment for the obtained date suggested that the composition of synergistic extraction species is (UO₂(D)₂T). The logarithm of the apparent equilibrium constant, log Kex, of synergistic extraction reaction has been evaluated, to be 3.35 ± 0.1. The effect of temperature on extraction process was investigated and the apparent values of the thermodynamics parameters (?H, ?G and ?S) were 38.2 kJ/mol, ?19.1 kJ/mol and 192.5 J/mol respectively.     

Extraction of Am(III) by mixture of dihexyl N,N-diethylcarbamoylmethyl phosphonate and tributyl phosphate in benzene from nitric acid solutions

Extraction of Am(III) by dihexyl N,N-diethylcarbamoylmethyl phosphonate (CMP) in benzene from nitric acid solutions (pH 2.0 to 6.0M) has been studied. High extraction of Am(III) by CMP from 2–3M HNO₃ was observed. The species extracted was found to be Am(NO₃)₃·3CMP. The extraction was also done with mixtures of CMP+TBP and CMP+TOPO, where mixed species were extracted in the organic phase. The back-extraction experiments gave an efficient back-extraction of Am(III) by pH 2.0 (HNO₃) from the loaded CMP+TBP phase but a poor back-extraction from the loaded CMP+TOPO phase. The loading of Nd(III) by mixture of CMP and TBP was 50% of the CMP concentrations at a total Nd(III) concentration of 0.182M. The thermodynamic parameters of Am(III) extraction by a mixture of CMP and TBP were evaluated by temperature variation method, which suggests that the two-phase reaction is stabilized by enthalpy and opposed by entropy.     

Inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopic determination of rare earth elements in geological samples after preconcentration by countercurrent chromatography—Part II

This paper directly links up with Part I [Spectrochim. Acta 48B, 1365 (1993)] which treats the first application of countercurrent chromatography (CCC) for pre-separation of rare earth elements (REE) in rocks. The rapid and reliable separation and pre-concentration of “light” REE and Y can be achieved using a system of 0.5 mol/l di-2-ethylhexylphosphoric acid (D2EHPA) in n-decane-hydrochloric acid of different concentrations and a planetary centrifuge as a CCC device. However, Tm, Yb and Lu are partially retained in the stationary phase. Comparative data is presented on three other two-phase liquid systems containing trioctylphosphine oxide (TOPO); D2EHPA and TOPO mixtures and diphenyl(dibutylcarbamoylmethylphosphine)oxide (Ph₂-Bu₂) as extractants in terms of their ability for whole REE group complete isolation from the rock constituents. The partial losses of “light” REE (La and Ce) occurred in the system of 0.1 mol/l solution of TOPO in isobutylmethylketone (IBMK) (stationary phase)-1 mol/l NH₄NO₃-6 mol/l HCl aqueous solutions (mobile phase). Complete isolution of the entire REE group can be reached in two systems: 0.3 mol/l D2EHPA + 0.02 ml/l TOPO in the solvents mixture (3:1) of n-decane + IBMK, respectively (stationary phase)-1 mol/l NH₄NO₃-6 mol/l HCl aqueous solution (mobile phase), and 1.0 mol/l Ph₂-Bu₂ solution in chloroform (stationary phase)-3 mol/l HNO₃ aqueous solution (mobile phase). The D2EHPA + TOPO mixture is recommended as more economic and accessible.     

Synergistic extraction of cobalt(II) with oxine/decanoic acid solution mixtures in benzene and chloroform

Synergistic extraction of Co(II) with 8-hydroxyquinoline (Hq)/decanoic acid [(HR)₂] solution mixtures in benzene and chloroform was carried out at 25°C. The aqueous ionic strength and the total concentration of cobalt(II) were 0.1 (NaCl) and 1·10^–5–1·10^–3M, respectively. The synergistic effect is interpreted by the formation of the mixed ligand ion-pair complexes: [(Coq(Hq)₂(HR))⁺, R^–] and [(Coq(Hq)₂(HR)₃)⁺, R^–] in benzene and chloroform, respectively.     

The study of distribution coefficients of silver and mercury with chelating ion-exhange resin Dowex A-1

The distribution coefficients (DC) for HgCl ₄ ^2– , Hg(SO₄) ₂ ^2– , Hg(NO₃) ₄ ^2– , Ag⁺, Ag(SCN) ₂ ^– and Ag(NH₃) ₂ ⁺ between aqueous solutions and Dowex A-1 were measured in varying hydrogen ion concentrations. The DC of Ag⁺ in the NO ₃ ^– media was very low (4 to 6). The DC for the Ag(SCN) ₂ ^– complex decreased as pH increased. The Ag(NH₃) ₂ ⁺ complex had a constant DC of about 65 from pH 8 and above. The trend observed for three mercury complexes in HCl, H₂SO₄ and HNO₃ was similar; the DC decreased steadily from 0.1M to 6M. The HgCl ₄ ^2– complex had the highest DC (9000) while the Hg(NO₃) ₄ ^2– complex had the lowest DC (2000).     

Characterization of europium(III) carbonate complexes in simulated groundwater by solvent extraction

The complex formation of Eu(III) by bicarbonate/carbonate ions has been studied at 0.1 M ionic strength and 25°C using synergistic solvent extraction system of 1-nitroso-2-naphthol and 1,10-phenanthroline in chloroform. Concentrations of bicarbonate (5·10^–3 to 1·10^–1 M) and carbonate (5·10^–4 to 1·10^–2 M) ions in the aqueous phase have been varied in the pH range of 8.0 to 9.1 to simulate ground and natural water compositions. Under these conditions, the following species have been identified: Eu(HCO₃)²⁺, Eu(HCO₃)₂ ⁺, Eu(CO₃)⁺ and Eu(CO₃)₂ ^–. Their conditional formation constants (log ) have been calculated as 4.77, 6.74, 6.92 and 10.42, respectively. These values suggest that the carbonate complexes of Eu(III) are highly stable.     

Tail-end purification of americium from plutonium loading effluents using a mixture of octyl (phenyl)-N,N-diisobutylcarbamoylmethylphosphine oxide and tri-N-butyl phosphate

The tail-end purification of Am from Pu loading effluents in 7.5M HNO₃ containing 160 mg l^–1 Am and 1.2 mg l^–1 Pu has been carried out. With 0.2M CMPO+1.2M TBP in dodecane as the extractant and stripping by 0.04M HNO₃+0.05M NaNO₂, the Pu level is brought down to 31.2 g l^–1. When the acidity was reduced to 4.2M HNO₃, one contact with 20% TLA/dodecane and subsequent extraction by a mixture of CMPO and TBP and stripping with 0.04M HNO₃+0.05M NaNO₂ gave Am samples without any detectable amounts of Pu. The recovery of Am was 90% by the first procedure and 98% by the second one.     

The kinetics of Eu(III) sorption onto and desorption from sorbents containing XAD-7 impregnated with both dicarbollide and DBDECMP

The kinetics (1–1000 minutes shaking) of 5·10^–4M Eu sorption from 0.1M HNO₃ onto the support XAD-7 impregnated with approximately equimolecular mixture of DBDECMP and dicarbollide depends appreciably on the technique of the preparation of the impregnated support. The highest distribution factors are obtained if DBDECMP is only used to impregnate the support and dicarbollide is added directly to the aqueous phase. The rate of sorption increases slightly with adding 1·10^–5M surfactants but the effect is too weak for practical use. The best stripping agent found is an equimolecular mixture of DCTA and citric acid at pH 7. This work is a continuation of the investigation^1–3 of the synergic effect occurring in the sorption of low concentrations of europium due to the simultaneous presence of H⁺[(C₂B₉H₈Cl₃)₂Co]^– (abbreviated as dicarbollic acid, HB) and di-butyl-N-di-ethyl-carbamoylmethyl phosphonate (DBDECMP) on a suitable support. The system is promising for the separation of small amounts of tervalent transuranium and lanthanoid elements from radioactive waste. In the previous paper we have investigated quasi-equilibrium sorption of various Eu concentrations (24 hour shaking). In the present paper kinetic data of sorption and quasi-equilibrium data on desorption are studied. Preliminary kinetic studies of similar systems^2,3 have shown that the rate of both the sorption and desorption processes in this type of system is one of the decisive factors in the practical application of this separation method. Whereas in the previous paper¹ both DBDECMP and CMPO (octyl-phenyl-N,N-diisobutyl carbamoylmethyl phosphineoxide) combined with dicarbollide were studied, for reasons given previously¹ (mainly a higher synergic effect) herein DBDECMP was only investigated.     

Separating Ag, B, Cd, Dy, Eu, and Sm in a Gd matrix using 2-ethylhexyl phosphonic acid mono-2-ethylhexyl ester extraction chromatography for ICP-AES analysis

The separation procedure for Ag, B, Cd, Dy, Eu and Sm as impurities in Gd matrix using ICP-AES technique with an extraction chromatographic column has been developed. The spectral interference of the Gd matrix on the elements was eliminated using a chromatography technique with 2-ethylhexyl phosphonic acid mono-2-ethylhexyl ester (PC-88A) as the mobile phase and XAD-16 resin as the stationary phase. Ag⁺, B₄O₇²⁻, and Cd²⁺ were eluted with 0.1 M HNO₃, while rare earth ions were not. The best eluent for separating Eu and Sm in the Gd matrix was 0.3 M HNO₃. The limit of quantitation for these elements was 0.6-3.0 ng mL⁻¹. The recovery of Ag, B, and Cd was 90-104% using 0.1 M HNO₃ as the eluent, while that of Eu, Gd, and Sm ranged from 100 to 102% with 0.3 M HNO₃. Dy was recovered quantitatively with 4 M HNO₃. The relative standard deviation of the methods for a set of three replicates was between 1.0 and 15.4% for the synthetic and standard Gd solutions. The proposed separation procedure was used to measure Ag, B, Cd, Dy, Eu, and Sm in a standard Gd solution.     

Extraction of Eu(III) by dinonylnaphthalenesulfonic acid and synergistic effects of crown ethers and trioctylphosphine oxide

The extraction of Eu(III) by dinonylnaphthalenesulfonic acid (HDNNS) in benzene from nitrate and perchlorate solutions has been investigated. For nitrate solutions the ionic strength of the aqueous phase was kept constant at 0.1M using NaNO₃–HNO₃ mixtures. The Eu distribution was measured at different temperatures. The following stoichiometric formulae for the Eu species in benzene were derived: Eu(NO₃) (H_n–1 (DNNS)_n)₂ and Eu(H_n–1 (DNNS)_n)₃, from the nitrate and perchlorate medium respectively (n being a small number, e.g. 1, 2 or 3). The equilibrium constants were calculated and the thermodynamic parameters of the system were determined. When adding dibenzo-24-crown-8, dicyclohexyl-18-crown-6 or trioctylphosphine oxide, no synergism, but rather antagonism was observed.     

Influence of chloride and sediment matrix on the extractability of HgS (cinnabar and metacinnabar) by nitric acid

The extractability of metacinnabar and cinnabar, alone or in the presence of some sediment components, with various concentrations of HNO₃ (1, 4, 6, and 14 M) was studied. Both forms of HgS (0.2–0.3 mg HgS in 10–20 mL of acid) were insoluble in all HNO₃ concentrations as pure compounds. The presence of FeCl₃ enhanced solubility of both cinnabar and metacinnabar, especially when concentrated HNO₃ was used for the extraction. As the same effect was not obtained in the presence of FeOOH, we concluded that chloride and not Fe³⁺ was responsible for HgS dissolution. In fact, addition of very low chloride concentration to concentrated HNO₃ provoked partial (Cl>10^–4 M) or even total dissolution (Cl>10^–2 M) of HgS. In dilute HNO₃ (4–6 M) cinnabar was much less affected by chloride addition than metacinnabar. Extraction of HgS by concentrated HNO₃ in the presence of sediment of various salinities demonstrated that the amount of dissolved HgS increased with the increase of the sediment salinity (from freshwater to estuarine and marine sediment), confirming that chloride enhances dissolution of HgS. Removal of chloride by washing the sediment with Milli-Q water significantly reduced dissolution of added HgS during extraction by concentrated HNO₃. These results demonstrate that conclusions based on the extraction schemes using concentrated HNO₃ as single extractant or as the first extractant in the sequential extraction procedures can be biased. A verification of artifactual oxidation of HgS, when using more concentrated HNO₃ as extractant, would help to verify reliability of the applied extraction procedure.     

Synergistic extraction of uranium(VI) and americium(III) with binary mixtures of Aliquat 336 and PC 88A-TOPO from nitric-sulfuric acid medium

Synergism is observed in the extraction of uranium(VI) by the binary mixture of Aliquat 336 and PC 88A (2-ethylhexylphosphonic acid mono-2-ethylhexyl ester) from 0.5–6M HNO₃ solution showing a maximum at 3M. In H₂SO₄ medium, antagonism at lower acidity and slight synergism at higher acid concentrations have been observed. Synergism occurs in the extraction of Am(III) from nitrate solutions when a mixture of Aliquat 336 and TOPO is used.