Date of Award
2011
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science
Program
Chemistry
Supervisor
Dr. Zhifeng Ding
Abstract
Hydrophobic room temperature ionic liquids (RTILs) have been demonstrated as effective alternative solvents to reprocess spent nuclear waste. Our group developed a new hydrophobic RTIL at low cost which is trihexyltetradecylphosphonium tetrakis(pentafluorophenyl)borate (P66614TB). The hydrophobicity of P66614TB was quantified by cyclic voltammetry at the interface between water and P66614TB.
We also developed an inexpensive, facile method to analyze the effectiveness of solvent extraction technique, which was electrochemistry at micro-liquid/liquid interfaces. An initial study in water| organic solvent system by this method identified both octyl(phenyl)-N,N- diisobutylcarbamoyl-methylphosphine oxide and 2-acetylpyridine-4-phenyl-3- thiosemicarbazone as suitable extractants of U022+and Sr2+.
The thermodynamics of ion transfer, especially the hydrophilic cations of UC>22+ and Sr2+, between water and P666i4TB phases were also investigated by three-phase junction electrochemistry, which play important role in the study of interfacial complexation between metal ions and specific ligands at the water| P66614TB interface.
Recommended Citation
Zhang, Jing, "ELECTROCHEMISTRY AT LIQUID/LIQUID INTERFACE TO EVALUATE SOLVENT EXTRACTION TECHNIQUE IN NUCLEAR REPROCESSING" (2011). Digitized Theses. 3378.
https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/digitizedtheses/3378