Construction of nanospace-confined adsorption electrocatalyst for efficient uranium extraction from fluoride-containing wastewater
摘要
Efficient extraction of uranyl [U(VI)O22+] from fluoride-containing wastewater is important for both uranium mining and fuel rod manufacturing. However, it remains challenging due to the strong interaction between U(VI)O22+ and F−, which results in the formation of water-soluble and stable [UO2Fn]2−n (n = 0, 1, 2, 3, 4) complexes. Herein, we propose an innovative nanospace-confined adsorption electrocatalytic strategy (NAES) that enables efficient extraction of U(VI)O22+ from fluoride-containing wastewater. This is realized by rationally introducing amidoxime groups (R) into the interlayer region of a cobalt layered double hydroxide electrocatalyst (creating Co-LDH-R). The amidoxime groups selectively bind U(VI)O22+, which is further electrocatalytically converted to a K5(UO2)2F9 solid by the action of the Co2+ sites of Co-LDH-R through an electrocatalytic redox process in the presence of K+ and F−. Co-LDH-R can stably extract U(VI)O22+ from fluoride-containing wastewater streams, with a remarkable capacity of 7255.15 mg/g after 72 h, positioning it as one of the most effective U(VI) extractants reported to date. The generated solid K5(UO2)2F9 can be collected for storage or further processing. Therefore, our work offers a promising new pathway for uranium resource recovery under practical conditions.