Extraction of rare earth metals from trichloroacetate solutions in the presence of linear polyoxonium compounds

Abstract

Extraction of rare earth metals from lithium trichloroacetate solutions ( 1.20-2.88 mol l-1) with solutions of the commercial nonionic surfactant Slovafol 909 (p-nonylphenylnonaethylene glycol) in chloroform and dichloromethane was investigated. The extraction constants as well as the Slovafol 909 distribution constants were determined in the water-dichloromethane and water-chloroform systems. The lanthanide distribution ratios decrease with their atomic numbers first rather rapidly (approximately to Sm): the separation factor αSmLa = 1.54 and 1.87 in dichloromethane and in chloroform, respectively; for lanthanides with higher atomic numbers the drop is less pronounced (αLuLa = 2.42 and 2.85 in the two solvents, respectively).