Selective extraction of trivalent actinides using CyMeBTPhen in the ionic liquid Aliquat-336 nitrate

• Published in: RSC advances Vol. 11; no. 11; pp. 614 - 621
• Main Authors: Zsabka, Péter, Van Hecke, Karen, Adriaensen, Lesley, Wilden, Andreas, Modolo, Giuseppe, Verwerft, Marc, Binnemans, Koen, Cardinaels, Thomas
• Format: Journal Article
• Published: 03.02.2021
• ISSN: 2046-2069
• DOI: 10.1039/d0ra10445k

The extraction of Am( iii ), Cm( iii ) and Eu( iii ) by 2,9-bis(5,5,8,8-tetramethyl-5,6,7,8-tetrahydro-1,2,4-benzotriazin-3-yl)-1,10-phenanthroline (CyMe 4 BTPhen) from nitric acid solution was studied using the ionic liquid Aliquat-336 nitrate ([A336][NO 3 ]) as diluent. Results show a high selectivity of the solvent for Am( iii ) and Cm( iii ) over Eu( iii ), but rather slow extraction kinetics. The kinetics of CyMe 4 BTPhen were largely improved by the addition of 0.005 mol L −1 N , N , N ′, N ′-tetra- n -octyl-diglycolamide (TODGA) as a phase transfer reagent and by the use of 1-octanol as co-diluent. The addition of the phase transfer catalyst and co-diluent did not compromise the selectivity towards the actinide/lanthanide separation and thus this four-component system can be successfully applied to separate Am( iii ) and Cm( iii ) from the lanthanides. Improving the kinetics of selective An( iii ) extraction from nitric acid feed solutions into an ionic liquid based solvent: combining CyMe 4 BTPhen with TODGA in Aliquat-336 nitrate.