Harvesting Precious Metals and Removing Contaminants from Natural Waters—Can Neutrons Benefit Industrial Researchers in Japan?

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Loong, C.-K. | Koyanaka, H.

Affiliations: Intense Pulsed Neutron Source Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, IL 60439, USA | CRMD/CNRS Orleans University, 45071 Orleans Cedex 2 France

Note: [] Corresponding author. E-mail: [email protected]

Note: [] E-mail: [email protected]

Abstract: Understanding material properties at a fundamental level is important to the development of the full potential of substances and the fruition of eventual industrial and commercial applications. The techniques of neutron-scattering provide unique capabilities in characterization of materials at nanometer scale thereby benefiting industrial research. We focus on a recent study of lithium extraction and arsenic removal from natural waters using nanostructured manganese-oxide based adsorbents. Neutron diffraction and spectroscopy, when combining with other characterization techniques and theoretical modeling, contributed to the understanding of the relation between adsorption behavior and material properties.

Keywords: Neutron scattering, Manganese oxide adsorbent, Lithium extraction, Arsenic removal

DOI: 10.1080/10238160412331297773

Journal: Journal of Neutron Research, vol. 13, no. 1-3, pp. 15-19, 2005