Ion Selective Resins: Development and Applications for Nuclear Waste Management

Organic based ion selective resins have some similar attributes: case of synthesis, high metal ion complexation ability, and flexibility for different nuclear waste management applications. For most chelating polymers, the ligand is deemed to be of primary importance for the interaction with the targeted metal ion. The role of the polymer matrix is usually ignored. For ion specific resins, the polymer structure is formed to a specific metal ion. Using the molecular imprinting technique, resins can be formed with functional groups and cavities for a target metal ion. Ion selective resins have been developed for the separation of Cs. The methods and concepts used for the development of the Cs specific resins have been applied to the development of selective resins for Eu (a trivalent actinide model). The resulting resins are characterized by FTIR spectroscopy, moisture regain, and ion exchange capacity. The incorporation of 8-hydroxyquinoline into the resin increases selectivity for Eu over La. The results for the Eu study indicate ion specific resins can be developed for the separation of trivalent actinides from nuclear waste.