Functionalized Adsorbents for the Recovery of Rare Earth Elements from Aqueous Media

摘要

The disclosure relates to the design and synthesis of selected ligands, dendrimers, polymers and other solid phase substrates for selective chelation of rare earth elements (i.e. lanthanides), and use of those selective ligands for synthesis of resins, polymers and other types of solid supports for separation and recovery of lanthanides from aqueous media. Recovery of critical elements from aqueous media occurs in a simple two-step process: pre-concentration of REE on the adsorbent and recovery by acid elution. The present invention can be used for design of selective ligands immobilized on solid substrates for extraction of various constituents, such as lanthanides, actinides, radionuclides, trace metals, etc., from aqueous media.

主权项

1. A method of recovering a rare earth element from aqueous media, comprising:
providing an adsorbent, wherein the adsorbent comprises:
a substrate, anda material attached to a surface of the substrate, wherein the material selectively binds with at least one rare earth element; exposing the adsorbent to the aqueous media, wherein the rare earth element binds to the material on the surface of the substrate; rinsing the adsorbent in an acid; and recovering the rare earth element from the acid.