Towards an optimized flow-sheet for a SANEX demonstration process using centrifugal contactors

Journal article, 2009

The design of an efficient process flow-sheet requires accurate extraction data for experimental set-up used. Often this data is provided as equilibrium data. Due to the small hold-up volume compared to the flow rate in centrifugal contactors the time for extraction is often too short to reach equilibrium D-ratios. In this work single stage kinetics experiments have been carried out to investigate the D-ratio dependence of the flow rate and to compare this with equilibrium batch experiments for a SANEX system based on CyMe4-BTBP. The first centrifuge experiment was run with spiked solutions while in the second a genuine actinide/lanthanide fraction from a TODGA process was used. Three different flow rates were tested with each set-up. the results show that even with low flow rates, only around 9% of the equilibrium D-ratio (Am) was reached for the extraction in the spiked test and around 16% in the hot test (the difference is due to the size of the centrifuges). In the hot test the lanthanide scrubbing was inefficient whereas in the stripping both the actinides and the lanthanides showed good results. Based on these results improvements of the suggested flow-sheet is discussed.