The effect of an electric field on the association of uranyl in aqueous solutions

In this contribution we study the role of electric field on the uranyl-uranyl association. For this purpose a set of molecular dynamics simulations has been performed for a series of uranyl aqueous solutions of different pH levels in an external electric field. The comparison of the association ratios with the corresponding no-field data reveals that, depending on the pH, the field can enhance or decrease the association. The fractions of uranyl in the associates are collected as well as the lifetimes of the associates. We also present a series of angular distributions characterizing the uranyl-uranyl mutual orientations within associates and the uranyl orientations with respect to the field direction.