Extraction of Polonium from Aqueous α-Hydroxyisobutyric Acid Solutions Using Dioctyl Sulphide, Cyanex 272, Cyanex 301 or Cyanex 302 in Toluene

A study of the extraction of polonium from aqueous solutions containing -hydroxyisobutyric acid (-HIBA) was performed with four different extractants, di-n-octyl sulphide (DOS), Cyanex 272, Cyanex 301 and Cyanex 302, dissolved in toluene. The extracted complex for DOS at low -HIBA concentrations is most likely PoO(-HIB)₂·2DOS, while at higher -HIBA concentrations there seems to be a solvating effect implicating an extracted complex of the type PoO(-HIB)₂(-HIBA)₂·2DOS. For the extraction of polonium with Cyanex 272 the results are inconclusive. The extracted complex is either PoOA₂ or PoO(-HIB)₂·2HA. For extraction with Cyanex 301 or Cyanex 302 the major extracted species does not contain any -HIBA molecules. The neutral species in both cases is PoOA₂, extracted at low extractant concentrations, while at higher extractant concentrations a complex of the type PoOA₂·xHA is extracted. The extraction of polonium increases in the order Cyanex 272 < DOS < Cyanex 302 < Cyanex 301.     

Synergistic extraction of uranium(VI) and thorium(IV) with mixtures of Cyanex272 and other organophosphorus ligands

The extraction of thorium(IV) and uranium(VI) from nitric acid solutions has been studied using mixtures of bis(2,4,4-trimethylpentyl)phosphinic acid (Cyanex272 or HA), and synergistic extractants (S) such as tri-butylphosphate (TBP), tri-octylphosphine oxide (TOPO) or bis(2,4,4-trimethylpentyl)thiophosphinic acid (Cyanex301). The results showed that these metallic ions are extracted into kerosene as Th(OH)₂(NO₃)A·HA and UO₂(NO₃)A·HA with Cyanex272 alone. In the presence of neutral organophosphorus ligands TBP and TOPO, they are found to be extracted as Th(OH)₂(NO₃)A·HA·S and UO₂(NO₃)A·HA·S. On the other hand, Th(IV), U(VI) are extracted as Th(OH)₂(NO₃)A·HA·2S and UO₂(NO₃)A·HA·S in the presence of Cyanex301. The addition of neutral extractants such as TOPO and TBP to the extraction system enhanced the extraction efficiency of both elements while Cyanex301 as an acidic extractant has improved the selectivity between uranium and thorium. The effect of TOPO on the extraction was higher than other extractants. The equilibrium constants of above species have been estimated by non-linear regression method. The extraction amounts were determined and the results were compared with those of TBP. Also, it was found that the binding to the neutral ligands by the thorium–Cyanex272 complexes follows the neutral ligand basicity sequence.     

Extraction of neodymium(III) using binary mixture of Cyanex 272 and Cyanex 921/Cyanex 923 in kerosene

The extraction of Nd(III) using binary mixtures of Cyanex 272 (HA), Cyanex 921/Cyanex 923 (B) in kerosene from nitric acid medium has been investigated. The effect of aqueous phase acidity, extractant concentration, nitrate ion concentration and diluents on the extraction of Nd(III) has been studied. On the basis of slope analysis results, extracted species are proposed as Nd(NO₃)A₂·3HA and Nd(NO₃)₂·A·3HA·B using Cyanex 272 and its mixture with Cyanex 921/Cyanex 923, respectively. With the mixture of 0.1 M Cyanex 272 and 0.1 M Cyanex 923 in kerosene, the extraction of 0.001 M Nd(III) from 0.001 M HNO₃ solution was found to be 83.3 % whereas it was 73.3 % when 0.1 M Cyanex 921 used as synergist under same experimental conditions. The stripping data of Nd(III) from the loaded organic phase containing 0.1 M Cyanex 272 and 0.1 M Cyanex 921/Cyanex 923 with different acids indicated sulphuric acid to be the best stripping agent.     

Organophosphinic,phosphonic acids and their binary mixtures as extractants for molybdenum(VI) and uranium(VI) from aqueous HCl media

Extraction studies of uranium(VI) and molybdenum(VI) with organophosphoric, phosphinic acid and its thiosubstituted derivatives have been carried out from 0.1–1.0M HCl solutions. The extracted species are proposed to be UO₂R₂ and MoO₂ CIR on the basis of slope analysis for uranium(VI) and molybdenum(VI), respectively. The extraction efficiencies of PC-88A, Cyanex 272, Cyanex 301 and Cyanex 302 in the extraction of molybdenum(VI) and uranium(VI) are compared. Synergistic effects have been studied with binary mixtures of extractants. Separation of molybdenum(VI) from uranium(VI) is feasible by Cyanex 301 from 1M HCl, the separation factor log being 2.3.     

Liquid-liquid extraction of tetravalent zirconium from acidic chloride solutions using Cyanex 272.

The liquid-liquid extraction of zirconium(IV) from acidic chloride solutions was carried out with Cyanex 272 as an extractant diluted in kerosene. An increase of the acid concentration decreased the percentage extraction of metal, which indicates that the extraction follows ion exchange-type mechanism: MO2+(aq) + 2(HA)2(org) <--> MO (HA2)2(org) + 2H+(aq), where, M = Zr(IV); HA = Cyanex 272. The extraction of Zr(IV) increases with an increase of the extractant concentration. In a plot of log D vs. log[extractant], M is linear with a slope of approximately 2, indicating the association of two moles of extractant with the extracted metal species. On the other hand, the extraction decreases with an increase of the H+ ion concentration. A plot of log D vs. log[H+] gave a straight line with a negative slope of 1.7, indicating the exchange of two moles of hydrogen ions for every mole of Zr(IV). The effect of the Cl- ion concentration at a constant concentration of [H+] did not show any change in the D values. The addition of sodium salts enhanced the percentage extraction of metal, and followed the order of NaSCN > NaNO3 > Na2SO4 > NaCl. The stripping of metal from the loaded organic (L.O) with different acids indicated sulfuric acid to be the best stripping agent. An increase of the temperature during the extraction and stripping stages increases the metal transfer, showing that the process is exothermic. The synergism, regeneration and recycling capacity of Cyanex 272; the extraction behavior of associated elements, such as Hf(IV), Ti(IV), Al(III), Fe(III); and IR spectra of the extracted Zr-Cyanex 272 complex were studied.     

Liquid-liquid extraction of uranium(VI) by Cyanex 301/alamine 308 and their mixtures with TBP/DDSO

Quantitative extraction of uranium(VI) is observed from 0.2M HCl by 5% (v/v) Cyanex 301. The extraction decreases with increasing acid concentration. Mixtures of Cyanex 301 with tri-n-butyl phosphate (TBP), didecyl sulfoxide (DDSO) and Alamine 308 result in significant synergism in the extraction process, where a species of the type UO₂R₂. L is proposed to be extracted [RH=Cyanex 301 and L=TBP, DDSO or Alamine 308]. Significant extraction of uranium(VI) by 5% (v/v) Alamine 308 is observed at and above 2M HCl, which increases with further increase in acidity attaining a maximum at 6M, after which a slight decrease in extration is observed. Mixtures of Alamine 308 with TBP or DDSO result in a synergism, where a species of the type (R ₃ NH)₂ UO₂Cl₄. Lis extracted. [R ₃ N=Alamine 308, L=TBP or DDSO]. Mixtures of Alamine 308 and Cyanex 301 at 2M HCl result in a profound antagonism in the extraction of uranium(VI).     

Cadmium(II) extraction from phosphoric media by bis(2,4,4-trimethylpentyl) thiophosphinic acid (Cyanex 302)

Cadmium extraction from phosphoric acid at different concentrations (0.7–8.8 M) by the commercial reagent Cyanex 302 in kerosene has been studied. Experimental results have been treated graphically and numerically and the formation of the species CdR₂(HR) in the organic phase has been proposed. The value of the equilibrium constant increases with the phosphoric concentration in the aqueous media. Small Cyanex 302 concentrations in the organic phase are enough to remove Cd(II) quantitatively from phosphoric acid solutions.     

Separation of Am from lanthanides by a synergistic mixture of purified Cyanex 301 and TBP

The dependence of the distribution ratios of ²⁴¹Am and lanthanides between purified Cyanex 301 (HBTMPDTP)–TBP–kerosene/nitrate solution on pH, lanthanide concentration in aqueous phase and degree of saponification of HBTMPDTP was investigated. The distribution ratios of ²⁴¹Am and lanthanides increase with pH and degree of saponification of HBTMPDTP and decrease with lanthanides concentration. Countercurrent multistage extraction consisting of 7 extraction, 3 washing and 2 stripping stages showed that more than 99.99% of ²⁴¹Am and less than 0.04% of lanthanides were extracted. The pH_1/2 value of Am was 2.45 compared to 3.16 in case of HBTMPDTP–kerosene extraction.     

Extraction of U(VI) with Cyanex 302

U(VI) was quantitatively extracted from 1·10⁻³M HNO₃ using 5·10⁻³M Cyanex 302 in xylene and was stripped from organic phase with 5M HCl. The optimum extraction conditions have been evaluated by studying parameters like acidity, effect of diluents, extractant concentration and period of equilibration. Based on this data, the separations of uranium from binary and complex metal mixtures and its recovery from uranmicrolite tailings (leachate) were successfully tested. Uranium can be determined with a relative standard deviation of 0.4%.     

Separation of trivalent americium and europium by purified Cyanex 301 immobilized in macro porous polymer

The present work confirms the high separation ability of purified Cyanex 301 towards trivalent americium over europium in liquid-liquid extraction. Solvent 2-nitrophenyl octyl ether (NPOE) lowered the partitioning of Am³⁺ but remained the separation ability over europium. Solvent toluene and 3-octanone lowered the separation factor to 1000. It is feasible to separate Am³⁺ from Eu³⁺ by Cyanex 301 which was immobilized in the macro porous polymer (MPP). 3-Octanone is a suitable solvent for dissolving NH₄OH-saponified Cyanex 301 and MPP is a suitable solid supported material for column operation. A five-step column experiment demonstrated the feasibility to separate Am³⁺ from Eu³⁺ in column which was packed with Cyanex 301-impregnated MPP.     

Liquid-liquid extraction of Th(IV) with Cyanex302

Summary Th(IV) was quantitatively extracted from 1 ^. 10^-3M HNO₃ using 1 ^. 10^-3M Cyanex302 in xylene and was stripped from the organic phase with 5M HCl. The effect of different parameters affecting the extraction was systematically studied to achieve optimum conditions for the extraction of thorium. Based on the data some separations of thorium from binary and complex mixtures and its recovery from monazite sand were achieved. The method is reproducible with a relative standard deviation of 0.4%.     

Interfacial behavior of Cyanex 302 and kinetics of lanthanum extraction

In this paper, interfacial tension of Cyanex 302 is measured by a Sigma-701 tensiometer and the adsorption parameters are calculated according to the Gibbs and Szyszkowski adsorption isotherms. The interfacial adsorbed behavior of Cyanex 302 is investigated. The results demonstrate that the dimer is the predominant species in the bulk organic phase; however, the monomer is adsorbed at the interface and more interfacially active. The effects of aqueous pH, ion strength, and temperature on the interfacial activity of Cyanex 302 in heptane are discussed and explained in detail. The lower interfacial activity of Cyanex 302 in aromatic hydrocarbon than in aliphatic hydrocarbon has also been determined. The values of interfacial excess at the saturated interface increase in the order n-heptane>cyclohexane>toluene>benzene, which is consistent with the order of extractability of lanthanum by Cyanex 302 in these diluents. The interfacial activity data are used to discuss the kinetic mechanism of lanthanum(III) extraction. It is shown that an interfacial mechanism is very probable, and the extraction limiting step is the reaction between the Cyanex 302 molecules in the organic phase sublayer and the adsorbed intermediate complex.     

Extractive separation of Th(IV), U(VI), Ti(IV), La(III) and Fe(III) from Zarigan ore

In this study, the effects of various extraction parameters such as extractant types (Cyanex302, Cyanex272, TBP), acid type (nitric, sulfuric, hydrochloric) and their concentrations were studied on the thorium separation efficiency from uranium(VI), titanium(IV), lanthanum(III), iron(III) using Taguchi^??s method. Results showed that, all these variables had significant effects on the selective thorium separation. The optimum separations of thorium from uranium, titanium and iron were achieved by Cyanex302. The aqueous solutions of 0.01 and 1 M nitric acid were found as the best aqueous conditions for separating of thorium from titanium (or iron) and uranium, respectively. The combination of 0.01 M nitric acid and Cyanex272 were found that to be the optimum conditions for the selective separation of thorium from lanthanum. The results also showed that TBP could selectively extract all studied elements into organic phase leaving thorium behind in the aqueous phase. Detailed experiments showed that 0.5 M HNO₃ is the optimum acid concentration for separating of thorium from other elements with acidic extractants such as Cyanex272 and Cyanex302. The two-stage process containing TBP-Cyanex302 was proposed for separation thorium and uranium from Zarigan ore leachate.     

Liquid-liquid extraction and recovery of indium using Cyanex 923

The extraction of In(III) from HCl, H₂SO₄, and HNO₃ media using a 0.20 mol l⁻¹ Cyanex 923 solution in toluene is investigated. In(III) is quantitatively extracted over a fairly wide range of HCl molarity while from H₂SO₄ and HNO₃ media the extraction is quantitative at low acid concentration. The extracted metal ion has been recovered by stripping with 1.0 mol l⁻¹ H₂SO₄. The stoichiometry of the In(III): Cyanex 923 complex is observed to be 1:2. The extraction of In(III) is insignificantly changed in diluents namely toluene, n-hexane, kerosene (160-200 °C), cyclohexane, and xylene having more or less the same dielectric constants, whereas, it decreases with increasing polarity of diluents such as cyclohexanone and chloroform. The extractant is stable towards prolonged acid contact and there is a negligible loss in its extraction efficiency even after recycling for 20 times. The extraction behavior of some commonly associated metal ions namely V(IV), Ti(IV), Al(III), Cr(III), Fe(III), Ga(III), Sb(III), Tl(III), Mn(II), Fe(II), Cu(II), Zn(II), Cd(II), Pb(II), and Tl(I) has also been investigated. Based on the partition data the conditions have been identified for attaining some binary separations of In(III). These conditions are extended for the recovery of pure indium from zinc blend, zinc plating mud, and galena. The recovery of the metal ions is around 95% with purity approximately 99%.     

Separation of Americium from Lanthanides by Purified Cyanex 301 Countercurrent Extraction in Miniature Centrifugal Contactors

In order to further test the actinides/lanthanides separation performance by Cyanex 301 extraction, a countercurrent extraction experiment was carried out in the present work. The separation process consisted of 7-stage extraction, 3-stage scrubbing and 4-stage stripping. 14 miniature centrifugal contactors were installed in glove box for the experiment. The feed solution from TRPO process, mainly consisting of 4.4 M HNO3, ∼3.7×10⁸Bq Am-241, 0.02 M lanthanides, ∼120 ppm Mo and 100 ppm Fe, was pretreated by the following procedures: denitrating to 0.2 M HNO3 by formic acid, adjusting pH to 2 by 8 M NaOH, removing most Fe³⁺ by 0.2 M Cyanex 301-kerosene cross-flow extraction, and then adjusting pH to 3.5 by 1 M NaOH. About 5.6×10⁸Bq Pm-147 was added into the feed solution to trace lanthanides during the experiment. The experiment lasted for 9 hours with a feed flow rate of 30 ml/h. The results show that 99.95% Am was separated from lanthanides and only 0.1% lanthanides were extracted together with Am. 99.3% Am and 96.6% Pm were stripped from load Cyanex 301 by 1.0 M HNO3, respectively.     

Recovery of Metals from Electronic Waste-Printed Circuit Boards by Ionic Liquids,DESs and Organophosphorous-Based Acid Extraction

The extraction of metals from waste printed circuit boards (WPCBs) with ionic liquids (ILs), Deep Eutectic Solvents (DESs) and organophosphorous-based acid (Cyanex 272) has been presented. The study was undertaken to assess the effectiveness of the application of the new leaching liquids, and the new method of extraction of metals from the leachate and the solid phase with or without the leaching process. Solvent extraction from the liquid leachate phase has been studied in detail with popular ILs, such as tetraoctylphosphonium bromide, {[P_8,8,8,8][Br] and tributyltetradecylphosphonium chloride, [P_4,4,4,14][Cl] using Aqueous Biphasic Systems (ABS) method. Trihexyltetradecylphosphonium bis(2,4,4-trimethylpentyl) phosphinate, [P_6,6,6,14][Cyanex272], ([P_6,6,6,14][BTMPP]), trihexyltetradecylphosphonium thiocyanate, [P_6,6,6,14][SCN], methyltrioctylammonium chloride (Aliquat 336), as well as bis(2,4,4-trimethylpentyl)phosphinic acid (Cyanex 272) were also used in the extraction of metals from the leachate. Two DESs (1) {choline chloride + lactic acid, 1:2} and (2) {choline chloride + malonic acid, 1:1} were used in the extraction of metals from the solid phase. The extraction behavior of metals with DESs was compared with that performed with three new bi-functional ILs: didecyldimethylammonium salicylate, [N_10,10,1,1][Sal], didecyldimethylammonium bis(2-ethylhexyl) phosphate, [N_10,10,1,1][D2EHPA], and didecyldimethylammonium bis(2,4,4-trimethylpentyl) phosphinate, [N_10,10,1,1][Cyanex272]. The [P_6,6,6,14][Cyanex272]/toluene and (Cyanex 272 + diethyl phosphite ester) mixtures exhibited a high extraction efficiency of about 50–90% for different metal ions from the leachate. High extraction efficiency of about 90–100 wt% with the ABS method using the mixture {[P_8,8,8,8][Br], or [P_4,4,4,14][Cl] + NaCl + H₂O₂ + post-leaching liquid phase} was obtained. The DES 2 revealed the efficiency of copper extraction, E_Cu = 15.8 wt% and silver, E_Ag = 20.1 wt% at pH = 5 from the solid phase after the thermal pre-treatment and acid leaching. The solid phase extraction efficiency after thermal pre-treatment only was (E_Cu = 9.6 wt% and E_Ag = 14.2 wt%). The use of new bi-functional ILs did not improve the efficiency of the extraction of metal ions from the solid phase. Process factors such as solvent concentration, extraction additives, stripping and leaching methods, temperature, pH and liquid/solid as well as organic/water ratios were under control. For all the systems, the selectivity and distribution ratios were described. The proposed extraction processes can represent alternative paths in new technologies for recovering metals from electronic secondary waste.     

Development of reliable analytical method for extraction and separation of thorium(IV) by Cyanex 272 in kerosene

A simple and selective spectrophotometric method has been developed for the extraction and separation of thorium(IV) from sodium salicylate media using Cyanex 272 in kerosene. Thorium(IV) was quantitatively extracted by 5 × 10⁻⁴ M Cyanex 272 in kerosene from 1 × 10⁻⁵M sodium salicylate medium. The extracted thorium(IV) was stripped out quantitatively from the organic phase with 4.0 M hydrochloric acid and determined spectrophotometrically with arsenazo(III) at 620 nm. The effect of concentrations of sodium salicylate, extractant, diluents, metal ion and strippants has been studied. Separation of thorium(IV) from other elements was achieved from binary as well as multicomponent mixtures such as uranium(VI), strontium(II), rubidium(I), cesium(I), potassium(I), Sodium(I), lithium(I), lead(II), barium(II), beryllium(II) etc. Using this method separation and determination of thorium(IV) in geological and real samples has been carried out. The method is simple, rapid and selective with good reproducibility (approximately ±2%).     

Solvent extraction of zinc from sulphate leaching solution of a sulphide-oxide sample using D2EHPA and Cyanex 272

Solvent extraction of zinc from sulphate leach solution obtained from the treatment of a sulphide-oxide sample, was investigated using D2EHPA and Cyanex 272 diluted in kerosene in a batch reactor. According to the results, D2EHPA exhibited the higher extraction efficiencies than Cyanex 272 at the organic/aqueous ratio of 1:1. The optimum concentration and pH for D2EHPA and Cyanex 272 were distinguished to be 0.5?mol/L and 2.5, and 0.035?mol/L and 3.5, respectively. Under these conditions, extraction efficiency was found to be ～75% for D2EHPA against 41% for Cyanex 272. The plot of log D versus log [D2EHPA] confirmed the presence of 1 mole D2EHPA in dimeric form for 1 mole Zn in the extraction system. Thermodynamic data showed that the zinc extraction process is endothermic. For D2EHPA, two-stage simulated counter-current extraction experiments were performed on the basis of the McCabe-Thiele diagram and the extraction percentage of zinc was found to be about 88%. The synergistic effect of Cyanex 272 and TBP with D2EHPA was particularly investigated. It was found that the mixture of 80% D2EHPA and 20% Cyanex 272 exhibited the best synergistic effect for Zn-extraction with a synergistic coefficient of 1.04.     

A low-temperature extraction-solvothermal route to the fabrication of micro-sized MoS2 spheres modified by Cyanex 301

Mono-dispersed molybdenum disulfide micro-spheres with the diameter of 1-3 μm have been successfully synthesized via extraction-solvothermal method at 150 °C. The extractant Cyanex 301 (di-(2,4,4-trimethylpentyl) dithiophosphinic acid) acted as phase transferring agent, reductant, sulfur source and morphology-controlling agent in the whole procedure. The obtained MoS₂ micro-spheres were characterized by XRD, EDS, SEM, TEM, HRTEM, IR, UV-Vis and TG, respectively. The influences of reaction conditions were discussed while a mechanism was proposed to explain the formation of the micro-spheres. Moreover, the tribological properties of liquid paraffin (LP) containing Cyanex 301-modified MoS₂ micro-spheres were also evaluated on a four-ball machine, showing that the obtained MoS₂ product was an excellent oil additive in LP and such lubricant had good anti-wear and friction-reducing properties.     

Solvent extraction separation of iron(III) and aluminium(III) from other elements with Cyanex 302

A rapid method was developed for the solvent extraction separation of iron(III) and aluminium(III) from other elements with Cyanex 302 in chloroform as the diluent. Iron(III) was quantitatively extracted at pH 2.0-2.5 with 5 x 10(-3) M Cyanex 302 in chloroform whereas the extraction of aluminium(III) was quantitative in the pH range 3.0-4.0 with 10 x 10(-3) M Cyanex 302 in chloroform. Iron(III) was stripped from the organic phase with 1.0 M and aluminium(III) with 2.0 M hydrochloric acid. Both metals were separated from multicomponent mixtures. The method was applied to the separation of iron and aluminium from real samples.