Toshiyasu Kiba

Preconcentration of silver(I), gold(III) and palladium(II) in sea water with p-dimethylaminobenzylidenerhodanine supported on silica gel

Abstract A water-insoluble chelating material, p-dimethylaminobenzylidenerhodanine on silica gel (DMABR—SG) is described for preconcentration of trace amounts of silver(I), gold(III) and palladium(II) from water samples. Radioactive tracers (110mAg and 195Au) were used to study the behavior of silver and gold; palladium was monitored spectrophotometrically as its 1-(2-pyridylazo)naphthol complex in chloroform. In batch experiments, silver was quantitatively retained on the DMABR—SG at acidities ranging from 1.7 M to pH 5, and gold from 3 M to pH 5; equilibrium was achieved within 1 min for both elements. From sea water, silver ion was completely retained at pH 1.0–6.5 and gold ion at pH 1.0–3.5. In the case of palladium, shaking for about 20 min was required for quantitative retention at pH 1.0–5.0 for aqueous solution and at pH 1.0–7.0 for sea water. The chelating capacity of the DMABR—SG was 23 μmol Ag, 11 μmol Au and 11 μmol Pd per g. Quantitative recovery of silver and gold on DMABR—SG columns from sea water was achieved at higher flow rates (1–2 l h-1 and 2–3 l h-1, respectively) than with other chelating resins, e.g., Chelex 100, palladium required slower flow rate (150 ml h-1). Silver retained on the DMABR—SG column was completely eluted with 20 ml of 2.5% sodium thiosulfate solution but palladium remained on the column. Silver, gold and palladium were quantitatively eluted with 20 ml of 0.1% thiourea in 0.1 M hydrochloric acid.

Silica gel as a support for inorganic ion- exchangers for the determination of caesium-137 in natural waters.

The preparation and characteristics of ammonium molybdophosphate and potassium or ammonium hexacyanocobalt ferrate supported in silica gel, and their application to the determination of (137)Cs in natural waters are described. Use of columns of these materials gives better recovery of (137)Cs from natural waters (in comparison with co-precipitation with ammonium molybdophosphate), requires less exchanger, so raising the gamma-counting efficiency of (137)Cs, and permits elimination of other radionuclides by washing with hydrofluoric acid.

Separation and determination of selenium in rocks, marine sediments and plankton by direct evolution with the bromide-condensed phosphoric acid reagent.

A new method is presented for the quantitative separation and determination of selenium by direct evolution with the bromide-condensed phosphoric acid reagent (Br(-)-CPA) from rocks, marine sediments and plankton. In the reaction with the Br(-1)-CPA, selenium(IV) and (VI) in the solid samples are evolved as selenium tetrabromide, and can be collected in an absorbing solution of 0.3M hydrochloric acid and 06M perchloric add (1:1), and then determined spectrophotometrically with 4-substituted o-phenylenediamines followed by the extraction of the resulting 5-substituted piazselenol into toluene. Elemental selenium and selenide do not react with the Br(-)-CPA, but can be determined after oxidation to selenite with potassium iodate. Therefore, successive distillations, the first with Br(-)-CPA and the second with IO(3)(-)-Br(-)-CPA, give a satisfactory means of diflerential determination of selenium(IV) and (VI), and elemental selenium and selenide. This method can be successfully applied for the separation of selenium in the neutron-activation analysis of standard rock samples, marine sediments and plankton, giving good and reliable results.

Studies on the formation and the extraction of molybdophosphoric acid

Abstract In order to clarify the mechanism of liquid-liquid extraction of molybdophosphoric acid, the formation of the extractable species in the aqueous solution and the extracted species in the organic phase were investigated by potentiometric, conductometric, and distribution measurements. The optimum range of pH for the formation lay between pH 1 and 2. A colorless heteropoly complex appeared to form in the absence of excess molybdate. The distribution of molybdophosphoric acid in organic solvents was related to the formation aspects in the aqueous solution and depended also on the nature of the polar solvents. The species extracted had an absorption maximum at 310 mμ. It was found that the molybdophosphoric acid extracted by 1-butanol was associated with six molecules of 1-butanol with the form of H 3 (PMo 12 O 40 ·6BuOH·×H 2 O.

Separation and determination of ruthenium by evolution with chromium(VI)-condensed phosphoric acid reagent

Ruthenium in various chemical forms can be evolved as the tetroxide from insoluble matrix materials by heating the sample with chromium(VI)-condensed phosphoric acid reagent (abbreviated as Cr(VI)-CPA). Because of its excellent decomposing power for various solid samples, condensed phosphoric acid is very useful in the chemical analysis of various insoluble materials, and when an oxidizing agent such as potassium dichromate is added in the CPA medium, drastic oxidation proceeds on heating. This method is now extended to the separation of ruthenium from marine sediments. During the reaction with Cr(VI)-CPA ruthenium tetroxide is evolved and collected in an absorbent solution of 6M hydrochloric acid and ethanol (1:1), and the ruthenium is then determined spectrophotometrically with thiourea or radiometrically by counting the beta or gamma-activity. Osmium, which can be evolved as the tetroxide by the same treatment, can be eliminated beforehand by heating the sample with Ce(IV)-CPA, which removes osmium but not ruthenium. The successive distillations by means of Ce(IV)-CPA and Cr(VI)-CPA give satisfactory results for the separation between osmium and ruthenium. This method might be useful for the separation of ruthenium in geochemical or neutron-activation analysis.

DETERMINATION OF RHENIUM IN MOLYBDENITE BY NEUTRON-ACTIVATION ANALYSIS.

A neutron-activation method is described for the determination of rhenium in molybdenite. Radiochemical separation by a carrier technique was carried out very rapidly by means of successive liquid-liquid extraction processes. The recovery of rhenium, which was determined by a spectrophotometric method, was about 93%. About 10 samples could be analysed within 6 hr in parallel runs.

SEPARATION OF TECHNETIUM FROM RHENIUM BY LIQUID-LIQUID EXTRACTION WITH POTASSIUM XANTHATE

A method is described for separating technetium from rhenium in hydrochloric acid medium by liquid-liquid extraction with potassium xanthate and carbon tetrachloride. The effects of the concentration of various acids, concentration of xanthate, different solvents and diverse ions have been investigated.

Determination of aluminum oxide in and on high-purity aluminum by a phenol dissolution method

Abstract A simple rapid determination of aluminum oxide in aluminum is described. Aluminum reacts with phenol at 180°C forming aluminum phenoxide but aluminum oxide does not. After the reaction, the aluminum oxide is filtered off and brought into aqueous solution by fusion with potassium hydrogensulfate for determination by atomic absorption spectrometry or by the 8-quinolinol spectrophotometric method. The reaction between aluminum and phenol is stoichiometric. The procedure is applicable to the determination of aluminum oxide in commercial aluminum metals of various forms. The method is relatively rapid and appears to be superior to the conventional bromine—methanol method.