Removal and recovery of aluminium and sulphate ions from an alkaline medium using solvent extraction

Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Master of Technology: Chemical Engineering in the Faculty of Engineering at the Cape Peninsula University of TechnologyThroughout the world, many water resources are polluted by industrial and domestic effluents, acid mine drainage, etc. The increasing awareness and concern about the environment has motivated in the recent years extensive research into developing new efficient, cost effective and environmentally sound technologies to treat industrial solutions bearing metals and sludges. From the literature review, much research has been, and is still being devoted to the performance of solvent extraction (SX) of aluminium or sulphate in acidic solutions and how to improve such performance. There is a general lack of information on liquid-liquid extraction of aluminium or sulphate in an alkaline solution. Thus, the need for a systematic investigation into the solvent extraction of aluminium and sulphate in an alkaline medium was important. This thesis focuses on the study of solvent extraction of aluminium and sulphate from alkaline solutions using Trioctylmethylammonium chloride, (Aliquat 336), in Kerosene as diluent