Using GC-FID to Quantify the Removal of 4-sec-Butylphenol from NGS Solvent by NaOH

Technical Report · Mon Dec 01 04:00:00 EST 2014

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/1185680· OSTI ID:1185680

Sloop, Jr., Frederick V. ^[1]; Moyer, Bruce A. ^[1]

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1. Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

A caustic wash of the solvent used in the Next-Generation Caustic-Side Solvent Extraction (NG-CSSX) process was found to remove the modifier breakdown product 4-sec-butylphenol (SBP) with varying efficiency depending on the aqueous NaOH concentration. Recent efforts at ORNL have aimed at characterizing the flowsheet chemistry and reducing the technical uncertainties of the NG-CSSX process. One technical uncertainty has been the efficacy of caustic washing of the solvent for the removal of lipophilic anions, in particular, the efficient removal of SBP, an important degradation product of the solvent modifier, Cs-7SB. In order to make this determination, it was necessary to develop a sensitive and reliable analytical technique for the detection and quantitation of SBP. This report recounts the development of a GC-FID-based (Gas Chromatography Flame Ionization Detection) technique for analyzing SBP and the utilization of the technique to subsequently confirm the ability of the caustic wash to efficiently remove SBP from the Next Generation Solvent (NGS) used in NG-CSSX. In particular, the developed technique was used to monitor the amount of SBP removed from a simple solvent and the full NGS by contact with sodium hydroxide wash solutions over a range of concentrations. The results show that caustic washing removes SBP with effectively the same efficiency as it did in the original Caustic-Side Solvent Extraction (CSSX) process.

• Research Organization: Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE EM Office of Technology Innovation and Development (EM-30)
• DOE Contract Number: AC05-00OR22725
• OSTI ID: 1185680
• Report Number(s): ORNL/TM--2014/444; EY4049110
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY