Uranium isotope fractionation during adsorption to Mn-oxyhydroxides.
Previous work has shown uranium (U) isotope fractionation between natural ferromanganese crusts and seawater. Understanding the mechanism that causes (238)U/(235)U fractionation during adsorption to ferromanganese oxides is a critical step in the utilization of (238)U/(235)U as a tracer of U adsorption reactions in groundwater as well as a potential marine paleoredox proxy. We conducted U adsorption experiments using synthetic K-birnessite and U-bearing solutions. These experiments revealed a fractionation matching that observed between seawater and natural ferromanganese sediments: adsorbed U is isotopically lighter by ∼0.2‰ (δ(238/235)U) than dissolved U. As the redox state of U does not change during adsorption, a difference in the coordination environment between dissolved and adsorbed U is likely responsible for this effect. To test this hypothesis, we analyzed U adsorbed to K-birnessite in our experimental study using extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) spectroscopy, to obtain information about U coordination in the adsorbed complex. Comparison of our EXAFS spectra with those for aqueous U species reveals subtle, but important, differences in the U-O coordination shell between dissolved and adsorbed U. We hypothesize that these differences are responsible for the fractionation observed in our experiments as well as for some U isotope variations in nature.
School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA.
Gregory A
GA
Brennecka
Laura E
LE
Wasylenki
John R
JR
Bargar
Stefan
S
Weyer
Ariel D
AD
Anbar
D000327:Adsorption; D005591:Chemical Fractionation; D007501:Iron / Q000737:chemistry; D008345:Manganese / Q000737:chemistry; D010084:Oxidation-Reduction; D010087:Oxides / Q000737:chemistry; D012623:Seawater / Q000737:chemistry; D014501:Uranium / Q000737:chemistry*; D014875:Water Pollutants, Radioactive / Q000737:chemistry*
D010087:Oxides; D014875:Water Pollutants, Radioactive; C505018:birnessite; C083456:ferro-manganese alloy; D008345:Manganese; D014501:Uranium; D007501:Iron