EFFECT OF CATIONS ON ALUMINUM SPECIATION UNDER ALKALINE CONDITIONS

A series of experiments were performed to examine the effect of metal cations common to high level waste on the phase of aluminum formed. Experiments were performed at temperature of 150 C, 75 C, and room temperature, either without additional metal cation, or with 0.01-0.2 molar equivalents of either Ni{sup 2+}, Fe{sup 3+}, Mn{sup 2+}, or Cr{sup 3+}. Results showed that temperature has the greatest effect on the phase obtained. At 150 C, boehmite is the only phase obtained, independent of the presence of other metal cations, with only one exception where a small amount of gibbsite was also detected in the product when 0.2 equivalents of Ni{sup 2+} was present. At 75 C, a mixture of phases is obtained, most commonly including bayerite and gibbsite; however, boehmite is also formed under some conditions, including in the absence of additional metal ion. At room temperature, in the absence of additional metal ion, a mixture of bayerite and gibbsite is obtained. The addition of another metal cation suppresses the formation of gibbsite, with a couple of exceptions (0.2 equivalents of Ni{sup 2+} or 0.01 equivalents of Cr{sup 3+}) where both phases are still obtained