Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 February 2011
Actinide specific chelator (che) conjugated with magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) have been developed to separate nuclear waste in acidic conditions. Compared to the traditional nuclear waste treatments, such as solvent extraction and ion exchange, this method is a simple, compact and cost-effective process that generates minimum secondary waste. In this paper, we focus on the coating process of MNPs to achieve a combination of good acidic resistance, high chelator loading density and efficient magnetic separation. An optimized silica coating process before conjugates chelator directly onto MNPs significantly improves the acidic resistance of the MNP-che complex. Chelator loading density is significantly increased by attaching a linear polyamine polymer poly(allylamine hydrochloride) (PAH) to the surface of the MNPs using chemical and physical approaches.