Metal separations of interest to the Chinese metallurgical industry

IBC Advanced Technologies' Molecular Recognition Technology (MRT) SuperLig(r) products selectively and rapidly bind with target species enabling their selective removal from solutions. The MRT process can produce a high purity separation product of maximum added value at a competitive cost. SuperLig(r) products have high selectivity for many target species which can include metal ions, anions, and neutral molecules. In operation, the SuperLig(r) product is first placed in a packed column. A solution containing a mixture of the target species and other chemical species is then passed through the column. The target species is removed selectively by the SuperLig(r) product, the column is washed to remove residual feed solution, and the target species is recovered by a minimal quantity of eluent. The result is a pure and concentrated species that can be kept for its value or disposed of safely. The process is environmentally and ecologically friendly with no organic solvents being used. This paper provides a review of some examples of applications of MRT to separations of interest to the Chinese metallurgical industry. Included are several applications of MRT, including Pd separations from Pt metal refinery streams and low-grade spent catalyst wastes, Rh recovery from spent auto catalyst and other feeds, Re removal from selected impurity ions, Cd removal from Co electrolyte, Bi removal from Cu electrolyte, In and Ge separations from difficult matrices, and removal of bivalent first transition series and other metal ions from acid mine drainage (Berkeley Pit, Montana). Finally, the potential application of MRT to separations involving the recovery of rare earth metals and Li from low-level waste solutions and end-of-life products is discussed.