Extraction separation of Am(III) and Eu(III) with TPEN isomers and decanoic acid

Matsumura, Tatsuro  ; Takeshita, Kenji*

Three TPEN isomers with different positon of nitrogen donor in pyridyl groups, t2pen, t3pen and t4pen, were synthesized and the extraction separation of Am(III) and Eu(III) with these ligands and a fatty acid, decanoic acid, was investigated. All isomers were similar in the complexation in the aqueous phase, such as the protonation and the formation of metal complex, however, they showed different extraction behavior of Am and Eu. The synergistic extraction effect for Am was observed for t2pen and the high separation factor about 100 was measured, when 1:2. The value is comparable to that for the extraction system with a famous nitrogen-donor extractant, BTP. On the other hand, the extractability of other isomers was very low and no separation of Am and Eu was observed. Only t2pen, in which nitrogen donor in pyridyl groups is positioned in the vicinity of the skeletal structure (N-C-C-N structure) of ligand, is available for the extraction separation of Am.