The N-donor complexing ligand 2,6-bis(5-(2,2-dimethylpropyl)-1H-pyrazol-3-yl)pyridine (C5-BPP) was synthesized and screened as an extracting agent selective for trivalent actinide cations over lanthanides. C5-BPP extracts Am(III) from up to 1 mol/L HNO(3) with a separation factor over Eu(III) of approximately 100. Due to its good performance as an extracting agent, the complexation of trivalent actinides and lanthanides with C5-BPP was studied. The solid-state compounds [Ln(C5-BPP)(NO(3))(3)(DMF)] (Ln = Sm(III), Eu(III)) were synthesized, fully characterized, and compared to the solution structure of the Am(III) 1:1 complex [Am(C5-BPP)(NO(3))(3)]. The high stability constant of log β(3) = 14.8 ± 0.4 determined for the Cm(III) 1:3 complex is in line with C5-BPP's high distribution ratios for Am(III) observed in extraction experiments.

With the aim of better understanding the selectivity of the established system 2,6-ditriazinylpyridine (BTP) for actinide(III)/lanthanide(III) separations, a related model system was synthesized and studied. The N donor complexing ligand 6-(3,5-dimethyl-1H-pyrazol-1-yl)-2,2'-bipyridine (dmpbipy) was synthesized having a fused N heterocycle ring structure modified from the BTP partitioning ligand, and its extraction performance and selectivity for trivalent actinide cations over lanthanides was evaluated. X-ray diffraction (XRD), extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS), and time-resolved laser fluorescence spectroscopy (TRLFS) results show that 1:1 complexes are formed, unlike the 1:3 complex for BTP systems. The equilibrium constant for curium complex formation with dmpbipy was determined to be log K = 2.80, similar to that for nitrate. The Gibbs free energy, ΔG(20 °C), of 1:1 Cm-dmpbipy formation in n-octan-1-ol was measured to be -15.5 kJ/mol. The dmpbipy ligand in 1-octanol does not extract Am(III) Eu(III) from HNO(3) but was found to extract Am(III) with limited selectivity over Eu(III) (SF(Am(III)/Eu(III)) ≈ 8) dissolved in 2-bromohexanoic acid and kerosene at pH > 2.4.

The complexation of Cm(III) and Eu(III) with 2,6-bis(5,6-di(sulfophenyl)-1,2,4-triazin-3-yl)pyridine (aq-BTP) is studied in water at pH 3.0 applying time-resolved laser fluorescence spectroscopy. With increasing ligand concentration [M(H(2)O)(9-3n)(aq-BTP)(n)] (M = Cm(III)/Eu(III), n = 1, 2, 3) complex species are spectroscopically identified. The conditional stability constants of the M(III) 1 : 3 complex species with aq-BTP are log β(03) = 12.2 for Cm(III) and log β(03) = 10.2 for Eu(III). The complexation reaction is enthalpy- and entropy-driven for both metal ions, while the enthalpy change ΔH(03) is 9.7 kJ mol(-1) more negative for Cm(III); changes in ΔS(03) are marginal. The difference in ΔG(03) of -12.7 kJ mol(-1) between the formation of the [M(aq-BTP)(3)] complexes agrees with aq-BTP's selectivity in liquid-liquid extraction studies.