Affiliation:
1. College of Mining and Coal, Inner Mongolia Key Laboratory of Mining Engineering, Inner Mongolia University of Science and Technology, Baotou 014010, China
2. CNNC Tongliao Uranium Industry Limited Liability Company, Tongliao 014010, China
Abstract
The removal of low concentrations of rare-earth ions (e.g., Er(III)) from water has stimulated interest in the field of mineral processing and water treatment. Here, an ion-exchange and complexation-assisted precipitation method for the removal of low concentrations of Er(III) from water using heptadecyl-1,1-bisphosphonic acid (HBPA) was investigated. The results showed that effective cation-exchange between Er(III) ions and the bisphosphonate headgroup was achieved, and the solution pH abruptly decreased from 6.5 to around 3.1 at the first stage, which further led to the formation of less soluble Er(III) heptadecyl-1,1-bisphosphonate complexes. While low concentrations of Er(III) ions in water are typically treated by the addition of HBPA, followed by the addition of sodium bicarbonate (adjusting the pH to 6–8) and activate carbon, Er(III) ions could be efficiently removed from aqueous solution after about 30 min based on the cation-exchange and complexation-assisted precipitation method. Additionally, the removal of ultra trace amounts of Er(III) ions was not significantly affected by coexisting trace amounts of alkaline-earth metal ions (Mg2+, Ca2+ and Sr2+). HBPA is an effective Er(III) chelator, which may be a potential and promising alternative technique to remove Er(III) ions from aqueous solutions.
Funder
Inner Mongolia Natural Science Foundation of China
Fundamental Research Funds for Inner Mongolia University of Science & Technology
Innovation and Entrepreneurship Training Program for College Students of Inner Mongolia University of Science & Technology
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