Return to search

Actinide partition in humic colloidal ternary systems

The partition of radionuclides between solid and solution phase has been studied in humic/quartz sand ternary systems. Data have been recorded under ambient (air) and inert (O2 and CO2 free) atmospheres. For Eu (III) and Th (IV), the systems show simple ternary behaviour, with sorption decreasing (and mobility increasing) in the presence of humic, whilst for U (VI), the behaviour is more complex, with the humic enhancing sorption and reducing mobility. There is also evidence that the sorbed humic has an enhanced affinity for the uranyl, which is probably due to fractionation of the humic. Further, the behaviour of plutonium has also been studied in these systems. Pu (IV) showed the simple ternary characteristics, which had been observed for Eu (III) and Th (IV). Pu (V) and Pu (VI) systems exhibited more complex behaviour, with low concentrations of humic actually enhancing sorption, probably due to ternary complex formation. A simple mathematical model has been developed to predict the behaviour of both metal ion and humic acid. The model performs well in predicting the partition of the humic and that of the metal ions in the systems that show simpler ternary behaviour.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:576881
Date January 2013
CreatorsKay, Rajiv Robert
ContributorsBryan, Nicholas
PublisherUniversity of Manchester
Source SetsEthos UK
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeElectronic Thesis or Dissertation
Sourcehttps://www.research.manchester.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/actinide-partition-in-humic-colloidal-ternary-systems(c21f9744-46fb-477f-9ebc-af87d3e6fca0).html

Page generated in 0.002 seconds