Safe and rapid development of capillary electrophoresis for ultratrace uranyl ions in radioactive samples by way of fluorescent probe selection for actinide ions from a chemical library.

After the serious nuclear accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant caused by the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011, the development of feasible, safe, and highly sensitive analytical methods (in terms of low levels of radiation exposure and radioactive waste generation) for radioactive samples, especially actinide (An) ions, represents an important challenge. Here we propose a methodology for selecting appropriate emissive probes for An ions with very low consumption and emission of radioactivity by capillary electrophoresis-laser-induced fluorescence detection (CE-LIF), using a small chemical library of probes with eight different chelating moieties. It was found that the emissive probe L1, which possesses the tetradentate chelating moiety 1,10-phenanthroline-2,9-dicarboxylic acid (PDA), was suitable for detecting uranyl ions. The detection limit for the uranyl-L1 complex using CE-LIF combined with dynamic ternary complexation and on-capillary concentration techniques was determined to be 2.9 × 10-12 M (0.7 ppt). No interference from the large excess of matrix metal ions was observed. This method was successfully applied to real radioactive liquid samples collected from nuclear facilities, including the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. This strategy not only permitted the development of a safe and rapid analytical method but also provided insight into the coordination chemistry of An ion complexes. Specifically, the PDA structure provided substantial kinetic inertness to its uranyl complex; the formation of a ternary complex between uranyl-L1 and carbonate was revealed; and unusual interactions were observed between the π-electron systems of uranyl and the phenanthroline ring, which stabilized the uranyl-PDA interaction.

Application of capillary electrophoresis with laser-induced fluorescence detection for the determination of trace neodymium in spent nuclear fuel using complexation with an emissive macrocyclic polyaminocarboxylate probe.

A simple and rapid method with low radiation exposure risk was developed for the determination of neodymium in spent nuclear fuel by capillary electrophoresis with laser-induced fluorescence detection using a fluorescent probe having a macrocyclic hexadentate polyaminocarboxylate structure. The concentration of Nd(III) in a spent nuclear fuel sample was determined with no interference from various matrix elements, including lanthanides and uranium (at a 200-fold excess), with 92 ± 3% recovery. This is due to high resolution based on establishing a ternary complex equilibrium during migration in which the hydroxyl ion plays an auxiliary role (log K(Ln-L-OH) = 3.9-5.3).

Carbon-14 analysis in solidified product of non-metallic solid waste by a combination of alkaline fusion and gaseous CO2 trapping.

In order to establish a simple and rapid analytical method for (14)C in solidified products made from non-metallic low-level radioactive solid wastes such as concrete, mortar and glass by melting treatment, a radiochemical analysis in combination with alkaline fusion as a sample decomposition method was examined. A simulated solidified product containing (14)C, which was prepared by using nuclear reaction (14)N(n, p)(14)C with thermal neutron irradiation, was analyzed by the present method to compare with a conventional radiochemical analysis using oxidizing combustion. The reproducible and quantitative recovery of (14)C from the simulated solidified product indicates that the present method is more efficient for (14)C analysis in solidified products than the conventional method using oxidizing combustion.

Equilibrium and ab initio computational studies on the adduct formation of 1,3-diketonato-lithium(I), -sodium(I) and -potassium(I) with 1,10-phenanthroline and its 2,9-dimethyl derivatives.

Highly effective and selective synergistic extraction of Li+ has been found using 2-naphthoyltrifluoroacetone (Hnta) as an acidic chelating agent and 2,9-dimethyl-1,10-phenanthroline (dmp) or 2,9-dimethyl-4,7-diphenyl-1,10-phenanthroline (dmdpp) as a neutral ligand (denoted as L) in toluene. The synergism was ascribed to the adduct formation in the organic phase, and the composition and the formation constants of the adducts for alkali metal ions (M+) were determined by the extraction equilibrium analysis. The adducts found were M(nta)L for Li+ and Na+, while M(nta)L and M(nta)L2 for K+. To understand thermodynamics of the adduct formation with the bidentate amines, quantum chemical calculations of the 1:1 and 1:2 adduct formations with dmp and 1,10-phenanthroline (phen) were performed. The electronic and steric effects of the methyl groups at 2,9-positions of phen on the thermodynamic functions of adduct formation as well as the high lithium selectivity were quantitatively elucidated.