Application of Cu-Tetraporphyrin Encapsulated in Zeolite as an Ion Exchanger for Removal of UO22+

Abstract

Uranium as a radioactive element is 500 times more abundant than gold and is widespreaded over the earth´s crust. The toxicity of uranium is much higher than its radioactivity. The removal of uranium from industrial and nuclear wastes is therefore an essential task. In this research, Zeolite Y was first synthesized and copper-tetraporphyrine was encapsulated in it’s pores. The adsorbent was characterized by different techniques including FT-IR, TG and UV-Vis spectroscopy. The adsorption of the studied cation was investigated at different experimental conditions. The effect of pH, initial concentration, time and temperature on the adsorption process was studied and optimized. The results showed that the adsorbent is a good candidate for the removal of the studied cation.

Keywords

• zeolite
• porphyrine
• encapsulation
• ion exchange
• uo22+