Preparation of magnetic oil-based gel microspheres containing di(2-ethylhexyl)phosphoric acid for extraction of scandium ions at low concentrations in aqueous solutions

Extraction of low-concentration rare earths is one of the important paths for the sustainability of the rare earth industry. The research and development of materials suitable for the extraction of rare earth ions at low concentrations is of great significance. Currently, the application of solvent extraction in the rare earth production industry is highly mature. However, it is not economical to use it for the extraction of low concentration rare earths with problems of phase separation and organic phase loss. This work innovatively proposes to encapsulate the extractant and diluent in magnetic oleogel microspheres, which are obtained by solubilizing magnetic poly (phenyl divinylbenzene)(PS-DVB) microspheres with the extractant and diluent.. The magnetic PS-DVB microspheres of 3 ∼ 16 μm were prepared by suspension polymerisation, followed by encapsulation of di(2-ethylhexyl)phosphoric acid (D2EHPA) and dichloroethane in magnetic PS-DVB microspheres using emulsion swelling, and then magnetic oil-based gel microspheres containing D2EHPA with a particle size of 10 ∼ 32 μm were obtained. The magnetic oil-based gel microspheres containing D2EHPA consist of about 96 wt% liquid phase and about 4 wt% solid phase, with D2EHPA accounting for more than 4.19 wt%. The magnetic oil-based gel microspheres are very close to small oil droplets and are superparamagnetic. The magnetic oil-based gel microspheres containing D2EHPA could completely extract 60 ppm of scandium ions(Sc3+) under the conditions of O:A = 1:50,1:60,1:70, and the extraction equilibrium times were 6, 9 and 12 min, respectively. This extractant encapsulation scheme inherits the selectivity of traditional extractants while simultaneously preserving the advantages of rapid extraction by solvent extraction.