EXTRACTION OF PROTACTINIUM WITH DIISOBUTYLCARBINOL

Conditions for extracting protactinium from solutions of irradiated thorium by diisobutylcarbinol (DrBC) (2,6dimethyl-4-heptanol) were determined in laboratory tracer experiments. Protactinium was extracted from a solution containing 1.0 M thorium, 0.6 M Al(NO/sub 3/)/sub 3/, and 4.0 M HNO/sub 3/. Impurities were scrubbed from the organic phase with a solution containing 0.6 M Al(NO/sub 3/)/sub 3/ and 2.0 M HNO/sub 3/. Feed/organic/scrub volume ratios were Protactinium was stripped from the orgnnic with 1.0 M HNO/sub 3/ containing 0.05 M fluoride. The extraction was made at 50 C to decrease emulsion formation. Under these conditions more than 99.5% of the protactinium was extracted. Decontamination factors from uranium, thorium, zirconium-niobium, and the rare earths were 6 x 10/sup 2/, 6 x 10/sup 4/, 5 x 10/sup 3/, 2.5 x 10/sup 2/, and 4 x 10/sup 3/, respectively. (auth)