Adsorption of Rare Earth Ce3+ and Pr3+ Ions by Hydrophobic Ionic Liquid

This study reports the use of hydrophobic ionic liquid (IL) based on D-galactose for the recovery of Ce (III) and Pr (III) ions from solutions. The equilibrium data were obtained by optimization of batch parameters, and various isotherms and kinetic models were utilised to predict the mechanistic process of sequestration of ions. The Arrhenius activation energies are found to be between 5–40 kJ, suggesting the physisorption process of ions onto IL. The present process is understood to be rapid and exothermic in nature according to thermodynamic experiments. The loading capacity was found to be 179.3 g L−1 and 141.5 g L−1, respectively, for Ce (III) and Pr (III) ions at pH 5 with a contact time of 30 min and dose being 0.1 g L−1. The higher uptake capacity is attributed to the presence of a highly electronegative fluorine atom in the IL. These results highlight the potential application of IL in the sequestration of Ce (III) and Pr (III) ions from any water sources.

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Selective leaching of rare earth elements from bauxite residue (red mud), using a functionalized hydrophobic ionic liquid

Hydrometallurgy ◽

10.1016/j.hydromet.2016.06.012 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 164 ◽

pp. 125-135 ◽

Cited By ~ 91

Author(s):

Panagiotis Davris ◽

Efthymios Balomenos ◽

Dimitrios Panias ◽

Ioannis Paspaliaris

Keyword(s):

Ionic Liquid ◽

Rare Earth ◽

Rare Earth Elements ◽

Red Mud ◽

Bauxite Residue ◽

Selective Leaching ◽

Hydrophobic Ionic Liquid

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Separation of Radionuclides from a Rare Earth-Containing Solution by Zeolite Adsorption

Minerals ◽

10.3390/min11010020 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

pp. 20

Author(s):

Deniz Talan ◽

Qingqing Huang

Keyword(s):

Rare Earth ◽

Rare Earths ◽

Contact Time ◽

Separation Efficiency ◽

Ph Value ◽

Solid Phase ◽

Separation Performance ◽

Solution Ph ◽

Zeolite Sample ◽

Alternative Sources

The increasing industrial demand for rare earths requires new or alternative sources to be found. Within this context, there have been studies validating the technical feasibility of coal and coal byproducts as alternative sources for rare earth elements. Nonetheless, radioactive materials, such as thorium and uranium, are frequently seen in the rare earths’ mineralization, and causes environmental and health concerns. Consequently, there exists an urgent need to remove these radionuclides in order to produce high purity rare earths to diversify the supply chain, as well as maintain an environmentally-favorable extraction process for the surroundings. In this study, an experimental design was generated to examine the effect of zeolite particle size, feed solution pH, zeolite amount, and contact time of solid and aqueous phases on the removal of thorium and uranium from the solution. The best separation performance was achieved using 2.50 g of 12-µm zeolite sample at a pH value of 3 with a contact time of 2 h. Under these conditions, the adsorption recovery of rare earths, thorium, and uranium into the solid phase was found to be 20.43 wt%, 99.20 wt%, and 89.60 wt%, respectively. The Freundlich adsorption isotherm was determined to be the best-fit model, and the adsorption mechanism of rare earths and thorium was identified as multilayer physisorption. Further, the separation efficiency was assessed using the response surface methodology based on the development of a statistically significant model.

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