Synergistic Extraction of Lanthanides in a Liquid-Liquid Countercurrent Centrifugal Extractor

We have developed a liquid-liquid countercurrent centrifugal extractor that induces Taylor vortices in the annular fluid region. To demonstrate extraction of multiple species (Nd/Sm/Eu/Gd/Dy) with N,N,N′,N′-tetraoctyl diglycolamide (TODGA), additional chemical agents, such as a surfactant (sodium bis(2-ethylhexyl) sulfosuccinate (AOT)), a synergist (nonanoic acid) and a masking agent (N,N,N′,N′-tetraethyl-3,6-dioxaoctane-1,8-diamide (DOODA(C2))) were employed. When only TODGA was utilized, extraction performance was not effective due to the insufficient dispersion even under a high rotating speed. By combining TODGA and other chemical agents, the separation performance was improved considerably in the countercurrent flow of aqueous and organic phases due to the synergistic effect and improved dispersion.