CMI researchers from Oak Ridge National Laboratory conducted the activity for this highlight
Innovation
Advanced spectroscopic techniques tested on the model monazite provide an efficient prescreening method for selecting hydroxamic acid ligands for flotation experiments of monazite ore.
Achievement
- A rapid prescreening of six hydroxamic acid ligands using UV-vis spectroscopy demonstrated the pH dependence of the ligand adsorption.
- The ligands identified with higher equilibrium adsorption via the UV-vis method demonstrated excellent performance in flotation experiments with monazite.
- Flotation experiments demonstrated the need to include the kinetic component in the prescreening testing protocols.
Significance and Impact
Speeding up the ligand selection through developing experimental workflow and testing protocols is significant in offering a boost in process optimization.
Hub Target Addressed
Rare Earth Elements - Developing processes to recover and separate REEs from traditional or unconventional sources.
