Combining a Lipophilic Phenanthroline Carboxamide and a Hydrophilic Diglycolamide to Increase the Separation Factors of Adjacent Light Lanthanides

ABSTRACTThe combination of two neutral CHON reagents, a lipophilic phenanthroline dicarboxamide and a hydrophilic diglycolamide, resulted in a synergistic separation of adjacent light lanthanides in nitrate medium as the ligands present a reversed lanthanide selectivity. Separation factors higher than 7 were obtained for the pair Pr/Nd, which is one of the highest values reported in the literature.KEYWORDS: Lanthanidessolvent extractionphenanthroline dicarboxamideTEDGA AcknowledgmentsAuthors would like to thank the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) for the commissioned project this study belongs to.Disclosure statementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).Additional informationFundingThis work was supported by the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization.