Engineering topics

Nash, Kenneth L

Publications and source records attributed to Nash, Kenneth L.

6 records

DOE OSTI2012

Complexation of N4-Tetradentate Ligands with Nd(III) and Am(III)

To improve understanding of aza-complexants in trivalent actinide–lanthanide separations, a series of tetradentate N-donor ligands have been synthesized and their complexation of americium(III) and neodymium(III) investigated by UV–visible spectrophotometry in methanolic solutions. The six pyridine/alkyl amine/imine ligands are N,N0-bis(2-methylpyridyl)-1,2-diaminoethane, N,N0-bis(2-methylpyridyl)-1,3-diaminopropane, trans-N,N-bis(2-pyridylmethyl)-1,2-diaminocyclohexane (BPMDAC), N,N’-bis(2-pyridylmethyl)piperazine, N,N’-bis-[pyridin-2-ylmethylene]ethane-1,2-diamine, and trans-N,Nbis-([pyridin-2-ylmethylene]-cyclohexane-1,2-diamine. Each ligand has two pyridine groups and two aliphatic amine/imine N-donor atoms arranged with different degrees of preorganization and structural backbone rigidity. Conditional stability constants for the complexes of Am(III) and Nd(III) by these ligands establish the selectivity patterns. The overall selectivity of Am(III) over Nd(III) is similar to that reported for the terdentate bis(dialkyltriazinyl)pyridine molecules. The cyclohexane amine derivative (BPMDAC) is the strongest complexant and shows the highest selectivity for Am(III) over Nd(III) while the imines appear to prefer a bridging arrangement between two cations. These results suggest that this series of ligands could be employed to develop an enhanced actinide(III)– lanthanide(III) separation system.

actinide separation↗

DOE OSTI2012

Affinity of An(VI) for N4-Tetradentate Donor Ligands: Complexation of the Actinyl(VI) Ions with N4-Tetradentate Ligands

In this report the affinity of four N4-tetradentate ligands that incorporate the 2- methylpyridyl functionality with hexavalent actinides (AnO2+2 ) has been investigated in methanol solution. The ligands studied include N,N*-bis(2-methylpyridyl)diaminoethane (BPMDAE), N,N-bis(2-methylpyridyl)-1,3-diaminopropane (BPMDAP), N,N*-bis(2-pyridylmethyl) piperazine (BPMPIP), and trans-N,N-bis(2-pyridylmethyl)-1,2-diaminocyclohexane (BPMDAC). Conditional stability constants describing the strength of the interaction were determined by UV-visible spectrophotometry. The log10K101 values for both U(VI) and Pu(VI) are comparable and show the same trend of stability with ligand structure. Dinuclear complexes are also indicated as being important. The log10K201 values for Pu(VI) complexation with the N4-ligands are identical for the four ligands (within experimental error), indicating that the structure of the ligand backbone has little effect on the stability of the (PuO2)2L2+ complex. The exception to this trend is the behavior of N,N*- bis(2-pyridylmethyl)piperazine (BPMPIP) with Pu(VI). This ligand displays a tendency to reduce Pu(VI) within the experimental time frame of 45 minutes. BPMPIP is the only ligand tested that contains tertiary amines in the ligand backbone. The decomposition of BPMPIP by Pu(VI) suggests a susceptibility of tertiary amines to oxidative degradation.

38 RADIATION CHEMISTRY, RADIOCHEMISTRY, AND NUCLEA↗

DOE OSTI2012

Synthesis and Evaluation of Conformationally Restricted N4-Tetradentate Ligands for Implementation in An(III)/Ln(III) Separations

The previous literature demonstrates that donor atoms softer than oxygen are effective for separating trivalent lanthanides (Ln(III)) from trivalent actinides (An(III)) (Nash, K.L., in: Gschneider, K.A. Jr., et al. (eds.) Handbook on the Physics and Chemistry of Rare Earths, vol. 18-Lanthanides/Actinides Chemistry, pp. 197-238. Elsevier Science, Amsterdam, 1994). It has also been shown that ligands that 'restrict' their donor groups in a favorable geometry, appropriate to the steric demands of the cation, have an increased binding affinity. A series of tetradentate nitrogen containing ligands have been synthesized with increased steric 'limits'. The pK a values for these ligands have been determined using potentiometric titration methods and the formation of the colored copper(II) complex has been used as a method to determine ligand partitioning between the organic and aqueous phases. The results for the 2-methylpyridyl-substituted amine ligands are encouraging, but the results for the 2-methylpyridyl-substituted diimines indicate that these ligands are unsuitable for implementation in a solvent extraction system due to hydrolysis.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗

DOE OSTI2011

Complexation Studies of Bidentate Heterocyclic N-Donor Ligands with Nd(III) and Am(III)

A new bidentate nitrogen donor complexing agent that combines pyridine and triazole functional groups, 2-((4-phenyl-1H-1,2,3-triazol-1-yl)methyl)pyridine (PTMP), has been synthesized. The strength of its complexes with trivalent americium (Am3+) and neodymium (Nd3+) in anhydrous methanol has been evaluated using spectrophotometric techniques. The purpose of this investigation is to assess this ligand (as representative of a class of similarly structured species) as a possible model compound for the challenging separation of trivalent actinides from lanthanides. This separation, important in the development of advanced nuclear fuel cycles, is best achieved through the agency of multidentate chelating agents containing some number of nitrogen or sulfur donor groups. To evaluate the relative strength of the bidentate complexes, the derived constants are compared to those of the same metal ions with 2,2*-bipyridyl (bipy), 1,10-phenanthroline (phen), and 2-pyridin-2-yl-1H-benzimidazole (PBIm). At issue is the relative affinity of the triazole moiety for trivalent f element ions. For all ligands, the derived stability constants are higher for Am3+ than Nd3+. In the case of Am3+ complexes with phen and PBIm, the presence of 1:2 (AmL2) species is indicated. Possible separations are suggested based on the relative stability and stoichiometry of the Am3+ and Nd3+ complexes. It can be noted that the 1,2,3-triazolyl group imparts a potentially useful selectivity for trivalent actinides (An(III)) over trivalent lanthanides (Ln(III)), though the attainment of higher complex stoichiometries in actinide compared with lanthanide complexes may be an important driver for developing successful separations.

10 SYNTHETIC FUELS↗

DOE OSTI2011

Preface

A short preface is given to introduce the subject matter of the book titled Advanced Separation Techniques for Nuclear Fuel Reprocessing and Radioactive Waste Treatment. The subject matter of this book is the separation science and technology underlying the efforts to manage irradiated nuclear fuel, including progress towards achieving a closed fuel cycle. The book is organized into two parts. The first part is aimed at providing fundamental scientific and engineering information related to nuclear fuel cycle separations. The second part is devoted to describing specific technological solutions that are being pursued in the development of advanced nuclear fuel cycles.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

DOE OSTI2010

Thermodynamic Features of the Complexation of Neodymium(III) and Americium(III) by Lactate in Trifluoromethanesulfonate Media.

The protonation of lactate has been studied in a variety of electrolyte solutions using microcalorimetry to reveal a distinct medium influence imposed on the thermochemistry of the investigated equilibrium. The thermochemistry of lactate protonation, when studied directly in 1.0 M sodium lactate, agreed well with the studies performed in trifluoromethanesulfonate (triflate). This thermodynamic agreement suggests that the physical chemistry of lactate in the solutions applicable to the TALSPEAK process – a solvent extraction method for separating trivalent actinides from trivalent lanthanides within the scope of used nuclear fuel processing efforts – may be simulated in triflate solutions. Potentiometry, spectrophotometry and microcalorimetry have been subsequently used to study the thermodynamic features of neodymium and americium complexation by lactate using triflate as a strong background electrolyte. Three successive mononuclear lactate complexes were identified for Nd(III) and Am(III). The stability constants for neodymium, log ß1 = 2.60 ± 0.01, log ß2 = 4.66 ± 0.02 and log ß3 = 5.6 ± 0.1, and for americium, log ß1 = 2.60 ± 0.06, log ß2 = 4.7 ± 0.1 and log ß3 = 6.2 ± 0.2, were found to closely agree with the thermodynamic studies reported in sodium perchlorate solutions. Consequently, the thermodynamic medium effect, imposed on the TALSPEAK-related solution equilibria by the presence of strong background electrolytes such as NaClO4 and NaNO3, do not significantly impact the speciation in solution.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗