Synthesis of amidoxime polymer gel to extract uranium compound from seawater by UV radiation curing

A new amidoxime polymer gel for uranium extraction from seawater was successfully prepared by photoinitiated crosslinking polymerization. It involves UV-induced radical polymerization of acrylonitrile (AN) and methacrylic acid (MAA) monomers with crosslinking agent and photoinitiator: an alternative synthesis pathway to gamma radiation. Characteristic peaks of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) indicated that nitrile group was completely converted into amidoxime group. Eight hours of 60 W UV curing was enough for polymer gel formation. For the 4 to 1 ratio of AN to MAA, crosslinking agent concentration of 1 g/100 mL-monomers and photoinitiator content of 60 mL/100 mL-monomer, maximum uranium adsorption capacity of 17.02 mg/g adsorbent in seawater was achieved for sample spiked with 10 ppm uranium. For seawater sample spiked with 2,245 ppm uranium, the adsorption capacity reached 432.41 mg/g adsorbent. The amidoxime polymer gel could be regenerated for at least eight cycles while retaining about 50% of the uranium uptake capacity. Thus, the present amidoxime polymer adsorbent is a high-efficiency seawater uranium recovery agent for both high and low uranium concentrations.