Preparation of a novel macroporous silica-based 2,6-bis(5,6-diisobutyl-1,2,4-triazine-3-yl)pyridine impregnated polymeric composite and its application in the adsorption for trivalent rare earths

A novel macroporous silica-based 2,6-bis(5,6-diisobutyl-1,2,4-triazine-3-yl)pyridine (iso-Bu-BTP), a neutral chelating agent having several softatom nitrogen, polymeric composite (iso-Bu-BTP/SiO₂-P) was synthesized. It was done through impregnation and immobilization of iso-Bu-BTP molecule into the pores of SiO₂-P particles with 40–60 μm of bead diameter and 0.6 μm of mean pore size. The effective impregnation resulted from the intermolecular interaction of iso-Bu-BTP and co-polymer inside the SiO₂-P particles by a vacuum sucking technique. To understand the possibility of applying iso-Bu-BTP in the MAREC process developed, the adsorption behavior of a few representative rare earths (REs) such as Ce(III), Nd(III), Gd(III), Dy(III), Er(III), Yb(III), and Y(III) towards iso-Bu-BTP/SiO₂-P was investigated at 298 K. The influence of the HNO₃ concentration in a wide range of pH 5.52–3.0M and a few chelating agents such as formic acid, citric acid, and diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA) on the adsorption of RE(III) was examined. It was found that in the presence of chelating agent, the adsorption ability of the tested RE(III) towards iso-Bu-BTP/SiO₂-P decreased due to two competition reactions of RE(III) with iso-Bu-BTP/SiO₂-P and chelating agents. In a 0.01M HNO₃ solution containing 1M formic acid or 1M citric acid, light RE(III) showed lower adsorption towards iso-Bu-BTP/SiO₂-P than that of the heavy one. This makes the separation of light RE(III) from the heavy one possible. Based on the similarity of minor actinides and heavy RE(III) in chemical properties and the results of column separation experiments, chromatographic partitioning of light RE(III) from a simulated high level liquid waste solution composed of the heavy RE(III) and minor actinides in MAREC process is promising.     

Adsorption of antimony(III) and antimony(V) on bentonite: Kinetics, thermodynamics and anion competition

This research attempted to study the adsorption of Sb(III) and Sb(V) on bentonite using batch experiments. The effects of reaction time, temperature, initial Sb concentration, and competitive anions at different concentrations on the adsorption of Sb(III) and Sb(V) were investigated. Kinetic studies suggested that the adsorption equilibriums for both Sb(III) and Sb(V) were reached within 24 h. The desorption of Sb adsorbate on the bentonite was observed following Sb(III) adsorption, probably due to the oxidation of Sb(III) on the bentonite surface and subsequent desorption of Sb(V). In addition, oxidation of Sb(III) can occur in the solution medium also, which decreases the concentration of Sb(III) in the solution thereby driving the equilibrium in the direction of desorption from the surface. The adsorption data at three temperatures were successfully modeled using Langmuir (r² > 0.82) and Freundlich (r² > 0.99) isotherms. The thermodynamic parameters (ΔG⁰, ΔH⁰, and ΔS⁰) were calculated from the temperature dependence, suggesting that the adsorption process of Sb(III) is spontaneously exothermic, while the adsorption process of Sb(V) is spontaneously endothermic. Competitive anions such as , , and hardly affected the Sb(III) adsorption on bentonite, while and could compete with for adsorption sites. The competition between and on adsorption sites was presumably due to the formation of surface complexes and the surface accumulation or precipitation of on bentonite surface.     

Reactions of pyridyl donors with halogens and interhalogens: an X-ray diffraction and FT-Raman investigation

Three different N-donors L, namely N-ethyl-N′-3-pyridyl-imidazolidine-4,5-dione-2-thione (1), N,N′-bis(3-pyridylmethyl)-imidazolidine-4,5-dione-2-thione (2), and tetra-2-pyridyl-pyrazine (3), bearing one, two and four pyridyl substituents, respectively, have been reacted with halogens X₂ (X = Br, I) or interhalogens XY (X = I; Y = Cl, Br). CT σ-adducts L · nXY, bearing linear N?XY moieties (L = 3; X = I; Y = Br, I; n = 2), and salts containing the protonated cationic donors H_nLⁿ⁺ (L = 1 − 3; n = 1, 2, 4), counterbalanced by Cl⁻, Br⁻, , , , , I₂Br⁻, , or anions, have been isolated. Among the reactions products, (H1⁺)Cl⁻, (H1⁺)Br⁻, , , and 3 · 2IBr have been characterised by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The nature of the products has been elucidated based on elemental analysis and FT-Raman spectroscopy supported by MP2 and DFT calculations.     

Determination of arsenic, iron and selenium in moss samples using hexapole collision cell, inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry

Different collision gases (H₂, He and premixed 7% H₂ in He) used in the hexapole collision cell of an inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometer (ICP-MS) were compared, and the gas-flow rates were optimized for the determination of arsenic (), iron () and selenium (). The study showed that the argon-based interferences at mass-to-charge ratios (m/z) of 56, 75 and 80 can be overcome by the optimized gas flows (7.5 ml min⁻¹ premixed 7% H₂ in He and 2 ml min⁻¹ H₂) in the hexapole collision cell. Detection limits of 15.5 ng l⁻¹ for iron () and 29 ng l⁻¹ for selenium () in 2% (v/v) HNO₃ were obtained under optimized collision cell conditions. The detection limit for arsenic () obtained in difficult hydrochloride acid matrix (5% HCl (v/v)) was 153 ng l⁻¹. The accuracy of the optimized method was confirmed by analyzing two moss reference materials. The results obtained by ICP-MS for arsenic, selenium and iron from both moss reference samples were, in most cases, in good agreement with the certified values.     

Crystal growth, characterization and physical properties of PrNiSb3, NdNiSb3 and SmNiSb3

The crystal structures of three new intermetallic ternary compounds in the LnNiSb₃ (Ln=Pr, Nd and Sm) family have been characterized by single crystal X-ray diffraction. PrNiSb₃, NdNiSb₃ and SmNiSb₃ all crystallize in an orthorhombic space group, Pbcm (No. 57), Z=12, with , , , and ; , , , and ; and , , , and , for Ln=Pr, Nd and Sm, respectively. These compounds consist of rare-earth atoms located above and below layers of nearly square, buckled Sb nets, along with layers of highly distorted edge- and face-sharing NiSb₆ octahedra. Resistivity data indicate metallic behavior for all three compounds. Magnetization measurements show antiferromagnetic behavior with (PrNiSb₃), 4.6 K (NdNiSb₃), and 2.9 K (SmNiSb₃). Effective moments of 3.62 μ_B, 3.90 μ_B and 0.80 μ_B are found for PrNiSb₃, NdNiSb₃ and SmNiSb₃, respectively, and are consistent with Pr³⁺ (f ²), Nd³⁺ (f ³), and Sm³⁺ (f ⁴).     

Thermoanalytical study of linkage isomerism in coordination compounds: Part I. Reinvestigation of thermodynamic and thermokinetic of solid state interconversion of nitrito (ONO) and nitro (NO2) isomers of pentaaminecobalt(III) chloride by means of DSC

Solid state thermal isomerization of [Co(NH₃)₅(ONO)]Cl₂ (nitrito isomer) to [Co(NH₃)₅(NO₂)]Cl₂ (nitro isomer) and reverse reaction were investigated by non-isothermal differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and found to be essentially an equilibrium process. The interconversions are accelerated at above 65 °C and reach to equilibrium state at about 155 °C. After establishment of the equilibrium the relative amounts of two isomers at any temperature are governed by Gibbs free energy relationship. The experimental enthalpy changes of isomerization of pure nitrito and nitro solid samples to the equilibrium state are −4.67 (±0.19) and 0.99 (±0.05) kJ mol⁻¹, respectively. From these values, total enthalpy change was calculated as: ΔH°=−5.66(±0.20) kJ mol⁻¹. Using Gibbs free energy relationship, equilibrium constant, total free energy and entropy changes were estimated at 60 °C as: K=7.72(±0.8),  kJ mol⁻¹ and  J K⁻¹ mol⁻¹.An initial rate method has been developed to determine the kinetic parameters of these reactions from non-isothermal DSC data. Both nitro to nitrito and reverse reactions obey first order kinetic law in solid state. Estimated activation parameters of forward and reverse paths at 60 °C are , , and , respectively. The negative activation entropy of both directions support the intramolecular mechanism of isomerization, including formation of a seven coordinate transition state, which formerly suggested based on spectral and X-ray methods.     

Adsorption behavior of trivalent americium and rare earth ions onto a macroporous silica-based isobutyl-BTP/SiO2-P adsorbent in nitric acid solution

To separate minor actinides from high level liquid waste (HLLW) of PUREX reprocessing, a silica-based macroporous isobutyl-BTP/SiO₂-P adsorbent was synthesized by impregnating isobutyl-BTP (2,6-di(5,6-diisobutyl-1,2,4-triazin-3-yl)pyridine) extractant into the macroporous SiO₂-P support with a mean diameter of 60 μm. A partitioning process using extraction chromatography for the treatment of HLLW was designed consisting five separation columns. As a partly work focused on isobutyl-BTP/SiO₂-P separation column, adsorption behavior of ²⁴¹Am and trivalent rare earth (RE) from simulated HLLW onto silica-based isobutyl-BTP/SiO₂-P adsorbent was investigated by batch method. Meanwhile, the chemical and radiolytic stabilities of isobutyl-BTP/SiO₂-P adsorbent against 0.01 M HNO₃ solution and γ-ray irradiation were studied. It was found that isobutyl-BTP/SiO₂-P adsorbent exhibited good adsorption selectivity for ²⁴¹Am over RE(III) in 0.01 M HNO₃ solution and showed weak or no adsorption affinity to light and middle RE(III) groups. In addition, in stability experiments, isobutyl-BTP adsorbent showed excellent stability against 0.01 M HNO₃ solution and γ-ray irradiation over 4 months contact time.     

Isolation of iron and strontium from liquid samples and determination of Fe and Sr in liquid radioactive waste

This paper describes the method of isolating iron and strontium from liquid samples with a low concentration of ions that enables simple and rapid determination of and . The method consists of binding (concentrating) Fe and Sr at the cation exchanger Amberlite IR-120, their elution from cation exchanger with 4 M HCl or 8 M HNO₃, isolating Fe on the TRU extraction chromatographic column with 4 M HCl or 8 M HNO₃, and isolating Sr on the Sr.spec column with the mixture of 8 M HNO₃+2 M HCl or 5 M HNO₃. After the isolation, is determined by liquid scintillation counting with scintillation solution, while activity of is obtained by Cherenkov counting in 5 M HNO₃. It was shown that successive counting can be used for simultaneous determination of activity. The activity ratio of (up to 20:1) and vice versa does not impact the determination. is also determined immediately after isolation. The measurements in α,β mode can be used to verify any presence of α-emitter (americium) in the fraction of iron and to correct the result. The method was tested by determining and in model samples and radioactive waste samples. The paper also shows that Fe and Zn can be bound to the TEVA and TRU resins from the solutions of HCl, HNO₃, and mixture of HCl+HNO₃. The binding strength depends on the type of resin and the concentration of the acid or the concentration of acids in the mixture. These resin and acids can be used for mutual separation of Fe and Zn and their separation from other elements.     

Thermodynamic properties of lithium mica: Lepidolite

Calorimetric measurements were made on natural sample of lepidolite having the composition (K_0.80Na_0.05Ca_0.07Rb_0.16Cs_0.03)(Li_1.34Al_1.40Fe³⁺_0.01)[Si_3.25Al_0.75O₁₀]F_1.80(OH)_0.20 from Na-Li-type rare-element-rich pegmatites of East Sayany, Russia. High-temperature enthalpy increments were measured with a Tian-Calvet calorimeter at 444-972 K using the drop method. The resultant (T) equation in the interval T = 298.15-972 K was calculated:  = 316.10 + 228.12 × 10⁻³ T − 50.10 × 10⁵ T⁻² (J K⁻¹ mol⁻¹) [± 0.4%] and the value of (298.15 K) = 327.8 J K⁻¹ mol⁻¹ was obtained. The standard molar enthalpy of formation from the elements was determined by high-temperature drop solution calorimetry in molten lead borate at T = 973 K. The value of Δ_f(298.15 K) for lepidolite was found to be −6201 ± 18 kJ mol⁻¹. The thermodynamic properties of lepidolite of idealized composition KLi_1.5Al_1.5[Si₃AlO₁₀]F₂ were estimated based on the experimental data obtained.     

Hetero dimer from tetrakisammonium cavitand and tetratopic crown ether cavitand

Hetero dimer between tetrakis(m-ammonium)cavitand and tetrakis(dibenzo-25-crown-8)cavitand 5 was formed in CDCl₃ at room temperature. The effects of solvent polarity and temperature on the stability of were studied and the thermodynamic parameters for the formation of are , ΔH⁰ = −67.4 kcal mol⁻¹ and ΔS⁰ = −201.6 cal mol⁻¹ K⁻¹.     

A new fluorescent metal sensor with two binding moieties

A new fluorescent chelator Oxa, having two metal-binding sites, was designed and synthesized in six steps. Oxa exhibited two distinctive dissociation constants for Zn²⁺ ( μM and  μM), with considerable fluorescence increase in aqueous buffer at pH 7.2. Affinities of Oxa for the other biologically important ions such as Ca²⁺ ( μM and  mM) and Mg²⁺ ( μM and could not be determined) in the same conditions were also obtained.     

A catenated anion receptor based on indolocarbazole

A catenated anion receptor 7 comprising two indolocarbazole units was prepared by olefin ring-closing metathesis using Grubbs’ catalyst. Receptor 7 possesses a cage-like cavity where anions are encapsulated by forming four hydrogen bonds in the order of Cl⁻ > AcO⁻ >  >  > Br⁻ >  > I⁻ ≈  in 1% H₂O/acetone.     

The activity of sodium oxide in molten float glass by EMF measurements

The Na₂O activity in the molten float glass composed of 13.2 m/o Na₂O, 70.2 m/o SiO₂, 10.0 m/o CaO, 5.9 m/o MgO, etc. was determined in the temperature range from 1260 to 1380 K by means of galvanic cells using Na-β″-alumina as solid electrolyte. The Na₂O activity, a_Na2O, accompanying the reaction Na₂O (dissolved in Na₂O-WO₃ melt)=Na₂O (dissolved in molten glass) was found to be given by as a function of temperature, and the relative partial molar enthalpy of Na₂O was calculated to be .     

Determination of chromium, cadmium and lead in food-packaging materials by axial inductively coupled plasma time-of-flight mass spectrometry

Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) with a time-of-flight (TOF) analyser was used for the determination of chromium, cadmium and lead in six food-packaging materials (paper and paper board). The samples (0.20-0.25 g) were digested in concentrated nitric acid in a high pressure microwave oven at 180 °C within 15 min. Two different plasma conditions were applied: cool plasma conditions (0.76 kW; 0.85, 0.89 and 15.5 l min⁻¹ nebuliser, auxiliary and plasma gas flow rate, respectively) for the determination of chromium and normal plasma conditions (1.21 kW; 0.66, 0.68 and 13.6 l min⁻¹ nebuliser, auxiliary and plasma gas flow rate, respectively) for the determination of cadmium and lead. External calibration was used in combination with rhodium (40 ng g⁻¹) as an internal standard. The detection limits (DL = 3S.D./sensitivity) under the conditions used corresponded to 0.01 ng g⁻¹ (), 0.06 ng g⁻¹ (), 0.07 ng g⁻¹ (), 0.03 ng g⁻¹ () and 0.02 ng g⁻¹ ( and ). The precision (R.S.D.) for six replicate determinations (10 s integration time) of 1 and 10 ng g⁻¹ of each analyte varied from 0.72% () to 4.43% (). The contents of chromium, cadmium and lead in the examined materials were evaluated using the signals of , and . They were in the range: 0.25-0.50 μg g⁻¹ for Cr, not detected (nd) to 0.12 μg g⁻¹ for Cd and 0.28-0.35 μg g⁻¹ for Pb in paper and 0.50-0.64 μg g⁻¹ for Cr, nd to 0.09 μg g⁻¹ for Cd and 0.67-0.99 μg g⁻¹ for Pb in paper board.