Sodium Hydroxide Extraction From Caustic Leaching Solutions

[摘要] This report describes experiments conducted to demonstrate the proof-of-principle of a method to recover NaOH from Hanford tank sludge leaching solutions. Aqueous solutions generated from leaching actual Hanford tank waste solids were used. The process involves neutralization of a lipophilic weak acid (t-octylphenol was used in these experiments) by reaction with NaOH in the aqueous phase. This results in the transfer of Na into the organic phase. Contacting with water reverses this process, reprotonating the lipophilic weak acid and transferring Na back into the aqueous phase as NaOH. The work described here confirms the potential application of solvent extraction to recover and recycle NaOH from solutions generated by leaching Hanford tank sludges. Solutions obtained by leaching sludges from tanks S-110 and T-110 were used in this work. It was demonstrated that Na+ is transferred from caustic leaching solution to the organic phase when contacted with t-octylphenol solutions. This was accompanied by a concomitant decrease in the aqueous-phase hydroxide ion concentration. Seventy to 80 % of the extracted Na was recovered by 3 to 4 sequential contacts of the organic phase with water. Cesium was co-extracted by the procedure, but Al and Cr remained in the feed stream.

[发布日期] 2002-09-18 [发布机构] Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (U.S.)

[关键词] Leaching;Sludges;Materials Recovery;Hydroxides;Sodium Hydroxides