A promising challenge in solvent extraction is to replace the conventional organic solvents, with ionic liquids (IL).1 Depending on the extraction systems, these new solvents show better efficiency than the conventional ones.2 Although some assumptions based on ions exchanges have been proposed in literature,1,2 these properties are not predictable because the involved mechanisms are still poorly understood. It is well established that the mechanisms underlying solvent extraction processes are based not only on the molecular chelation of the extractant molecules, but also on their ability to form supra-molecular aggregates due to their amphiphilic nature.3,4 However, so far, no study reports the IL effect on the aggregation properties of the extractant molecules. Our aim is to evaluate the influence of IL structure and polarity on solvent extraction mechanisms, by looking at the aggregation of the extractant molecules. We present the case of an extractant system we have already well characterized in common solvents: the HDEHP/TOPO system.5 We showed that its synergistic properties are related to a favored aggregation,3,4 and combined SAXS and SANS measurements pointed out the solvent polarity influence.

Solvent extraction in ionic liquids: Structuration and aggregation effects on extraction mechanisms

255th National Meeting (2018)

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