Recovery of uranium from ammonium di uranate filtrate by ion exchange

Uranium bearing liquid effluents are generated in the process of conversion of UF₆ to uranium metal powder. One such lean liquid effluent is ammonium di-uranate filtrate (ADUF) solution (pH = 9.1-9.6, F = 13-15 g/l), with uranium concentration in the range of 20-250 mg/l. For the recovery of uranium from ADUF, ion exchange method using quaternary ammonium functionalized Strong Basic Anion (SBA Type-I) exchange resin, Rohm and Haas IRA-458, had earlier been reported by Seneda et al. In the Indian scenario, a similar indigeneous commercial quaternary ammonium functionalized (SBA Type- I) resin, Indion ARU-104, is well known for uranium recovery from sulphuric acid leach liquor at Jaduguda mill. However it's performance in alkaline fluoride medium of ADUF, where uranium is known to form an anionic uranyl fluoride complex(2), is hitherto unreported. Here we share the results of detailed evaluation of Indion ARU-104 for the recovery of uranium from ADU filtrate that was generated at Integrated Fuel Fabrication Facility, BARC