Separation Cum Pre-Concentration Technique for Determination of Uranium in Sea, Brine and Ground Water at Nano to Sub nanogram Levels

Investigations were carried out for separation/pre concentration of uranium from aqueous solutions of different TDS using Powdered Activated Carbon (PAC). Parameters like amount of PAC, contact time, pH, volume of solutions and reagents for desorption were optimized. The sorption of uranium is more than 95% at pH 4-5 using 0.5 gram PAC with a contact time of 10 minutes. The sorbed uranium on PAC is recovered using 0.8N HNO₃ and determined by LED Fluorimetry. Method was successfully applied to ground water, sea water and brine water. Methodology is simple, selective, cost effective with minimal skills. RSD of the method varies ± 6-14 %.