Loading Actinides in Multilayered Structures for Nuclear Waste Treatment: The First Case Study of Uranium Capture with Vanadium Carbide MXene.
Efficient nuclear waste treatment and environmental management are important hurdles that need to be overcome if nuclear energy is to become more widely used. Herein, we demonstrate the first case of using two-dimensional (2D) multilayered V2CTx nanosheets prepared by HF etching of V2AlC to remove actinides from aqueous solutions. The V2CTx material is found to be a highly efficient uranium (U(VI)) sorbent, evidenced by a high uptake capacity of 174 mg g(-1), fast sorption kinetics, and desirable selectivity. Fitting of the sorption isotherm indicated that the sorption followed a heterogeneous adsorption model, most probably due to the presence of heterogeneous adsorption sites. Density functional theory calculations, in combination with X-ray absorption fine structure characterizations, suggest that the uranyl ions prefer to coordinate with hydroxyl groups bonded to the V-sites of the nanosheets via forming bidentate inner-sphere complexes.
Laboratory of Nuclear Energy Chemistry and Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Beijing 100049, China.
Lin
L
Wang
Laboratory of Nuclear Energy Chemistry and Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Beijing 100049, China.
Liyong
L
Yuan
Ningbo Institute of Material Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Ningbo 315201, China.
Ke
K
Chen
Laboratory of Nuclear Energy Chemistry and Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Beijing 100049, China.
Yujuan
Y
Zhang
Ningbo Institute of Material Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Ningbo 315201, China.
Qihuang
Q
Deng
Ningbo Institute of Material Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Ningbo 315201, China.
Shiyu
S
Du
Ningbo Institute of Material Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Ningbo 315201, China.
Qing
Q
Huang
Beijing Synchrotron Radiation Facility, Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Beijing 100049, China.
Lirong
L
Zheng
Beijing Synchrotron Radiation Facility, Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Beijing 100049, China.
Jing
J
Zhang
Laboratory of Nuclear Energy Chemistry and Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Beijing 100049, China.
Zhifang
Z
Chai
Department of Materials Science and Engineering and A. J. Drexel Nanomaterials Institute, Drexel University , Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, United States.
Michel W
MW
Barsoum
School of Environment and Chemical Engineering, North China Electric Power University , Beijing 102206, China.
Xiangke
X
Wang
Laboratory of Nuclear Energy Chemistry and Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Beijing 100049, China.
Weiqun
W
Shi
DFT calculation; EXAFS; MXene; actinide; sorption; uranium; vanadium carbide