Uranium(VI) sorption onto kaolinite in the presence and absence of humic acid

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Abstract
We studied the U(VI) sorption onto kaolinite in batch experiments in the absence and presence of humic acid (HA) under different experimental conditions: [U]0= 1 × 10-6M or 1 × 10-5M, [HA]0=10 or 50 mg/L,I=0.1 M or 0.01 M NaClO4, pH=3–10, CO2or N2atmosphere. The study showed that the U(VI) sorption onto kaolinite is influenced by pH, CO2and HA presence. In the absence of CO2, the U(VI) uptake increases with increasing pH value up to pH 6. Above pH 6 it remains unchanged. Because of the formation of negatively charged uranyl carbonate complexes, the decrease in the U(VI) sorption onto the negative surface of kaolinite was observed above pH 8 in the presence of CO2. In presence of HA, the adsorption of U(VI) closely follows the adsorption of HA. In the acidic pH range the U(VI) uptake is enhanced compared to the system without HA due to the formation of additional binding sites for U(VI) coming from HA adsorbed onto kaolinite. The formation of aqueous uranyl-humate complexes reduces the U(VI) sorption in the near neutral pH range. The enhancement of the U(VI) concentration from 1 × 10-6M to 1 × 10-5M results in the shift of the sorption pH edge by one pH unit to higher pH values. The ionic strength has only a slight influence on the U(VI) sorption onto kaolinite, whereas the HA sorption shows a dependence on the ionic strength.