Preparation and characterization of oxidized graphene for actinides and rare earth elements removal in nitric acid solutions from nuclear wastes

• Nanocomposites oxidized graphene modified by nitrogen and phosphorus reagents. • New sorption materials for recycling spent nuclear materials in nuclear medicine. • Separation of actinides and rare earth elements from nitric acid solutions. • Removal of Ca, Sr, Co, Cs, Fe, Al, Na, Mo, Pd, Zr, Ce, La, Th, U in nuclear wastes. The removal of actinides and rare earth elements (REEs) in nitric acid solutions; produced in nuclear processes; is a challenging job. The present article describes the sorption behavior of oxidized multilayer graphene (o-MG) to actinides and rare earth elements (REEs) in nitric acid solutions (up to 3 mol L -1 HNO 3 ), including nitrogen and phosphorus-containing reagents. The conditions for obtaining new sorption materials in a compact form; by adding directly a reagent (organic ligand) and a suspension of o-MG to nitric acid solutions; were optimized. o-MG was modified by using tetraoctyldiglycolamide, diphenyl-dibutyl-carbamoyl-methyl-phosphine oxide, tri-octyl-phosphinoxide, di-(2-ethylhexyl) phosphoric acid, tributyl phosphate and di-2-ethyl-hexyl-methyl-phosphonate reagents were used. The formation time of the solid-phase extractants compact phase was 20–240 min. The new materials sorption capacity to U (VI), Th (IV), Pu (IV), La (III), Ce (III) and Eu (III) in nitric acid solutions (3 mol L -1 HNO 3 ) was determined. The elements distribution coefficients were K d ~ 10 3 -10 4 mL g −1 . The efficiency of the obtained materials was confirmed by the data on the solid-phase isolation and separation of actinides and REEs from nitric acid solutions (3 mol L 1 HNO 3 ) in the presence of macro components (Cs, Sr, Fe, Mo, Pd, Zr, Co), which can be formed during recycling processes of spent nuclear materials and components used in nuclear medicine.