Method of recovering uranium

Patent · Tue Oct 09 04:00:00 EDT 1984

OSTI ID:6074773

Camp, F E; Swartzlander, A B

Uranium is recovered from a carbonate leach solution containing a dissolved uranium salt and a monovalent ion. The pH of the leach solution is adjusted to about 5 to about 7.5, and preferably to about 6 to about 7. Phosphate ion is then added to typical in-situ leach solutions in an amount from about 10 to about 30 mole % in excess of the amount needed to stoichiometrically react with the uranium in said solution. This results in the precipitation of a compound made up of the monovalent ion, uranium, and the phosphate ion, which is insoluble in the solution. The precipitate is then separated from the solution preferably by means of a centrifuge or a vortex clarifier. It can then be dissolved in acid, and the uranium extracted into an organic solvent such as DEHPA-TOPA in kerosene.

• Assignee: Wyoming Mineral Corporation
• Patent Number(s): US 4476099
• OSTI ID: 6074773
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

050300* -- Nuclear Fuels-- Mining-- (-1987)
11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS
ACTINIDE COMPOUNDS
ACTINIDES
CARBON COMPOUNDS
CARBONATES
CHLORIDES
CHLORINE COMPOUNDS
DISPERSIONS
DISSOLUTION
ELEMENTS
ENHANCED RECOVERY
FUELS
HALIDES
HALOGEN COMPOUNDS
IN-SITU PROCESSING
KEROSENE
LEACHATES
LEACHING
LIQUID FUELS
METALS
MIXTURES
ORES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PETROLEUM PRODUCTS
PH VALUE
PHOSPHATES
PHOSPHORUS COMPOUNDS
PRECIPITATION
PROCESSING
RECOVERY
SEPARATION PROCESSES
SOLUTIONS
URANIUM
URANIUM CHLORIDES
URANIUM COMPOUNDS
URANIUM ORES
URANIUM PHOSPHATES