Extraction behavior of cesium and some typical fission and non-fission products with a new 1,3-di(1-decyloxy)-2,4-crown-6-calix[4]arene

Abstract

Abstract A new macrocyclic supramolecular recognition agent, 1,3-di(1-decyloxy)-2,4-crown-6-calix[4]arene (DecylCalix[4]C6), was synthesized by a multistep reaction through separation and purification by column chromatography packed with silica gel. The extraction behavior of some representative fission and non-fission products such as La(III), Y(III), Cs(I), Rb(I), Pd(II), Mo(VI), Zr(IV), Sr(II), Ba(II), Ru(III), Na(I), and K(I), which were contained in highly active liquid waste (HLW), with DecylCalix[4]C6/1-octanol in HNO3 medium was investigated, in particular by examining the impact of contact time, the HNO3 concentration in the range of 0.4 to 5.0 M, and the temperature. DecylCalix[4]C6 showed excellent extraction ability and high selectivity for Cs(I) over the tested metals except for Rb(I). It was attributed to the effective recognition and complxation of DecylCalix[4]C6 for Cs(I). The optimum HNO3 concentration for the Cs(I) extraction was 3.0 M. The composition of the extracted species of Cs(I) with DecylCalix[4]C6 was determined to be (CsDecylCalix [4]C6)NO3. It is valuable for the effective partitioning of Cs(I) from highly active liquid waste with DecylCalix[4]C6 by liquid-liquid solvent extraction.