New Anion-Exchange Resins for Improved Separations of Nuclear Materials
Improved separations of nuclear materials will have a significant impact upon a broad range of DOE activities. DOE-EM Focus Areas and Crosscutting Programs have identified improved methods for the extraction and recovery of radioactive metal ions from process, waste, and environmental waters as critical needs for the coming years. We propose to develop multifunctional anion-exchange resins that facilitate anion uptake by carefully controlling the structure of the anion receptor site. Our new ion-exchange resins interface the field of ion-specific chelating ligands with robust, commercial ion-exchange technology to provide materials which exhibit superior selectivity and kinetics of sorption and desorption. The following Focus Areas and Crosscutting Programs have described needs that would be favorably impacted by the new material: Efficient Separations and Processing - radionuclide removal from aqueous phases; Plutonium - Pu, Am or total alpha removal to meet regulatory requirement s before discharge to the environment; Plumes - U and Tc in groundwater, U, Pu, Am, and Tc in soils; Mixed Waste - radionuclide partitioning; High-Level Tank Waste - actinide and Tc removal from supernatants and/or sludges. The basic scientific issues which need to be addressed are actinide complex speciation along with modeling of metal complex/functional site interactions in order to determine optimal binding-site characteristics. Synthesis of multifunctionalized extractants and ion-exchange materials that implement key features of the optimized binding site, and testing of these materials, will provide feedback to the modeling and design activities. Resin materials which actively facilitate the uptake of actinide complexes from solution should display both improved selectivity and kinetic properties. The long-range implications of this research, however, go far beyond the nuclear complex. This new methodology of ''facilitated uptake'' could revolutionize ion-exchange technology, allowing this robust, inexpensive procedure to attain unprecedented levels of ion affinity and selectivity.
- Research Organization:
- Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX (US)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Environmental Management (EM) (US)
- DOE Contract Number:
- FG07-97ER14765
- OSTI ID:
- 790210
- Report Number(s):
- DOE/ER/14765; Project Number 54770; TRN: US0200406
- Resource Relation:
- Other Information: PBD: 30 Apr 2001
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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New Anion-Exchange Resins for Improved Separations of Nuclear Material
New anion-exchange resins for improved separations of nuclear materials
Related Subjects
11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
ION EXCHANGE
RADIOISOTOPES
RESINS
ION EXCHANGE MATERIALS
RADIOACTIVE WASTE PROCESSING
REMEDIAL ACTION
MATERIALS RECOVERY
MATERIALS TESTING
CHELATING LIGANDS
ANION-EXCHANGE
ION-EXCHANGE
AMERICIUM
NITRIC-ACID PLUTONIUM
CEMENTED WASTES
SORPTION/DESORPTION
WASTE AND PROCESS STREAMS