April 12, 2024
Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA)
Comprehensive Research Organization for Science and Society (CROSS)
Inter-University Research Institute Corporation High Energy Accelerator
Research Organization (KEK)
J-PARC
French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission
French National Centre for Scientific Research
A new perspective to evolve resource recycling technologies
— Selectivity of rare metals and control of extraction rate by means of “supramolecular assemblies” —
- [Summary of announcement]
-
- The recycling of resources is important in a society aimed at a sustainable future. Under such circumstance, "solvent extraction method has drawn attention as a technology to separate and purify useful metals from solution in which various types of metals are dissolved.
- It has been commonly believed that the compatibility of extractants and metal ions is the only factor in determining which metal is extracted and separated and its amount. However, in this research, a significant difference in the extraction of metal ions was discovered between the case where toluene was used as an oil phase and the case where heptane was used, although the identical extractant was used.
- For the purpose of revealing this phenomenon, an international joint research team between Japan and France focused on "supramolecular assemblies" formed in the solvent extraction method and analyzed how these supramolecular assemblies carry metals out using X-rays and neutron rays.
- As a result, we found out that the characteristics of supramolecular assemblies formed by an extractant (malonamide) change depending on the solvent used as the oil phase, causing a difference in size recognition performance of metal ions. A new property to distinguish palladium from neodymium was found.
- This achievement gives us a "new perspective" to control the speed and efficiency of selecting metals by understanding the characteristics of supramolecular assemblies and taking advantage of them.
- [Information on article]
-
Name of journal: Journal of Molecular Liquids Title of article: Organization of malonamides from the interface to the organic bulk phase Names of authors: Cyril Micheau1, Yuki Ueda1, Ryuhei Motokawa1, Kazuhiro Akutsu-Suyama2, Norifumi L. Yamada3, Masako Yamada3, Sayed Ali Moussaoui4, Elizabeth Makombe4, Daniel Meyer4, Laurence Berthon4, Damien Bourgeois5 Organization of affiliation: - 1
- Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA)
- 2
- Comprehensive Research Organization for Science and Society (CROSS)
- 3
- Institute of Materials Structure Science, High Energy Accelerator Research Organization (KEK)
- 4
- French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA)
- 5
- French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molliq.2024.124372