Diglycolamide-functionalized dendrimers: Studies on Americium(III) pertraction from radioactive waste

Diglycolamide (DGA)-functionalized poly(propylene imine) diaminobutane dendrimers were evaluated as the carrier in supported liquid membranes (SLMs) for selective recovery of trivalent actinides over uranium. The 0, 1st, and 2nd generation dendrimers with 2, 4, and 8 DGA moieties, termed as LI, LII, and LIII, respectively, gave DAm values of 0.11 ± 0.02, 41.9 ± 3.21 and 109.4 ± 6.22 in solvent extraction studies using 1 mmol/L ligand solutions in a diluent mixture of 95% n-dodecane + 5% iso-decanol. SLM studies using polytetrafluoroethylene flat sheet membrane filters impregnated with 1 mmol solutions of LII and LIII suggested quantitative mass transfer of Pu4+, Am3+, and Eu3+ from 3 mol/L HNO3 in about 5 h. Various diffusional parameters affecting SLM transport have been calculated for better understanding the transport data. The stability of the SLM was also studied over a period of five days.