Transfer of actinide ion at the interface between aqueous and nitrobenzene solutions studied by controlled-potential electrolysis at the interface

A novel electrochemical method based on controlled-potential electrolysis has been developed for the elucidation of the ion transfer at the interface between two immiscible electrolyte solutions (ITIES). A relationship between the applied interfacial potential (E_app) and the amount of the ion transferred (A_tr) was investigated after an electrolytic equilibrium was attained by controlled-potential electrolysis. The A_tr was determined chemically or radiometrically instead of by current measurement. It was found that (i) controlled-potential electrolysis was applicable to the study of the transfer of such hydrophilic ions as transition metal ions which gave no appreciable current within the potential window in voltammetry or polarography at ITIES, (ii) controlled-potential electrolysis in combination with a sensitive analytical method enabled a study of the transfer reaction of an ion of very dilute concentration, and (iii) even when the transfer reaction of an ion was irreversible or quasi-reversible, a standard ion transfer potential could be determined by controlled-potential electrolysis without using a kinetic parameter. The controlled-potential electrolysis method developed was applied to the transfer reactions of actinide ions such as UO₂ ²⁺ and Am³⁺ from aqueous solution to nitrobenzene solution in the absence or presence of an ionophore facilitating the transfer. The Gibbs energy for the transfer of actinide ion and a stability constant of the complex between an actinide ion and the ionophore in nitrobenzene solution were determined from log D versus E_app plots (D the ratio of the concentration of the ion in nitrobenzene solution to that in aqueous solution). The feasibility of controlled-potential electrolysis as a method for electrolytic separation of actinide ions is discussed.