Separation Nanotechnology of Diethylenetriaminepentaacetic Acid Bonded Magnetic Nanoparticles for Spent Nuclear Fuel
- Idaho Univ., Moscow, ID (United States)
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
- Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
- Center for Advanced Energy Studies, Idaho Falls, ID (United States)
A nanomagnetic separation method based on Diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA) conjugated with magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) is studied for application in spent nuclear fuel separation. The high affinity of DTPA towards actinides aids in separation from the highly acidic medium of nuclear waste. The solubility and magnetization of particles at low pH is protected by encapsulating them in silica layer. Surface functionalization of silica coated particles with polyamines enhances the loading capacity of the chelators on MNPs. The particles were characterized before and after surface modification using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), helium ion microscopy (HIM), Fourier transform-infrared (FT-IR) spectrometry, and X-ray diffractometry. The coated and uncoated samples were studied using vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) to understand the change in magnetic properties due to the influence of the surface functionalization. The hydrodynamic size and surface charge of the particles are investigated using Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS). The uptake behavior of Am(III), Pu(IV), U(VI), and Np(V) from 0.1M NaNO3 solution was investigated. The sorption result shows the strong affinity of DTPA towards Am(III) and Pu(IV) by extracting 97% and 80% of actinides, respectively. The high removal efficiency and fast uptake of actinides make the chelator conjugated MNPs an effective method for spent nuclear fuel separation.
- Research Organization:
- Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (US). Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory (EMSL)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC05-76RL01830
- OSTI ID:
- 1072859
- Report Number(s):
- PNNL-SA-85852; 44713; KC0201020; TRN: US1400317
- Journal Information:
- Nano Energy, Vol. 2, Issue 1; ISSN 2211-2855
- Publisher:
- Elsevier
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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