In Situ Uranium Extraction through the Synthesis of the Uranyl Peroxide Studtite Using a Nonthermal Plasma
Extraction of uranium from water is an essential step in <i>in situ</i> leach (ISL) mining and environmental decontamination. This is often done by precipitating uranium in solution as the uranyl peroxide studtite, [(UO<sub>2</sub>)(O<sub>2</sub>)(H<sub>2</sub>O)<sub>2</sub>](H<sub>2</sub>O)<sub>2</sub>, by adding hydrogen peroxide, which is energy-intensive to produce and hazardous to transport. Here, we present a method for synthesizing studtite, by generating reactive oxygen species in solution using a nonthermal plasma. Precipitation of studtite is observed within 5 min of the onset of plasma treatment as confirmed by X-ray diffraction and Raman spectral analysis. The faradaic efficiency of studtite formation is analyzed to estimate the values of hydrogen peroxide yield, 1.23 molecules per incident ion, and the rate constant of the studtite-forming reaction, 4.44 × 10<sup>7</sup> M<sup>-1</sup> s<sup>-1</sup>. This work is a proof of concept and identifies significant parameters for the future development of a larger scale, higher throughput system.
Authors
- Daniel C. Martin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6535-2491)
- Jay A. LaVerne (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8383-7476)
- Peter C. Burns (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2319-9628)
- Kyson R. Smith
- David B. Go (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8948-1442)
- Savannah E. Benjamin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6293-4181)
Institutions
- University of Notre Dame (US)
- Astronomy and Space (AU)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Inorganic Chemistry
- Published
- 2024-10-22
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.inorgchem.4c03260
- Citations
- 2
- Primary Topic
- Radioactive element chemistry and processing
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.32
Funders
- University of Notre Dame
- Basic Energy Sciences