Amberlite XAD-2 impregnated Cyanex272: sorption desorption studies of thorium(IV)

Abstract

Amberlite XAD-2 impregnated with Cyanex272 was packed in a column and studied for separation and recovery of Th(IV). The effect of various parameters influencing sorption of Th(IV) viz. acid concentration, aqueous phase flow rates, nature and concentration of eluents and other ions were systematically studied. Under optimized conditions Th(IV) was quantitatively sorbed from 0.001 M HNO3 and recovered using 10 cm3 of 4.0 M HCl at 0.6 cm3 min−1 flow rate. Batch studies using impregnated resin were evaluated for using Langmuir and Freundlich adsorption isotherms. The sorption capacity of the impregnated resin for Th(IV) was 8.48 mmol g−1. The limit of detection for Th(IV) was 0.67 μg dm−3 and a reusability for more than 65 cycles was observed. The method developed was applied for isolation of Th(IV) from monazite sand. It was reproducible with a relative standard deviation (R.S.D.) of 0.8%.

Separation of Thorium from Zirconium Carbide Waste by Liquid–Liquid Extraction Using Tri-n-octylamine Solvent after Selective Acid Leaching

“…Several methods have been used for separation and purification of thorium from different matrices, including precipitation methods, , chromatographic methods, − supercritical fluid extraction (SFE), , ion exchange resins, − electrochemical methods, , solid phase extraction, − molecular imprinting, − and solvent extraction. − Lack of selective precipitating agents, possibility of losing some of the samples during precipitation and washing, and difficulty of pH adjustment especially in industrial usage are disadvantages of the precipitation methods. The chromatographic and ion exchange methods are time consuming, and furthermore, they do not lead to quantitative separations.…”