Separation and purification of Th from U by ammonium molybdophosphate from nitric solutions

Abstract

Ion-exchange / Thorium / Uranium / Sorption / Ammonium molybdosphateSummary. Ammonium molybdophosphate(AMP) was synthesized and characterized. The AMP was found to be insoluble in water or nitric acid solutions of different concentrations. The sorption of Th and U from nitric acid by AMP has been investigated. The effect of shaking time on the sorption of Th was studied. The effect of nitric acid, Th concentration and AMP on the sorption of Th were also studied. Studies on the retention capacity of AMP showed that its capacity decreased by increasing the nitric acid concentration of Th. The saturation capacity was found to be 120 mg Th/g AMP from 0.1 M HNO 3 , 80 mg Th/g AMP from 3 M HNO 3 . On the basis of these results a selective and new method for separating of Th from U was developed using a floating bed column.