Location: PDT Zoom: 828 685 7838; the video will be shown at UT Austin in POB 3.304
Title: Ligand-functionalized Membranes for Lanthanide and Actinide Separations
Abstract
Rare earth element (REE) supply chains have taken center stage in both technological and political discussions worldwide. With rising demand for energy and defense applications and volatile geopolitics surrounding the sourcing and processing of REEs – the US is pursuing domestic sources to secure our supply chains. To leverage secondary sources such as mine tailings, a key step in the process is separating radioactive actinides from lanthanides prior to purifying individual lanthanides. This tutorial draws a throughline from the challenges and successes associated with traditional phosphate-based solvent extraction chemistries to the opportunities for membrane technologies that leverage ligand-functionalized membranes in ion-exchange, nanofiltration, and membrane adsorbers.
Bio
Christine Duval is the Warren E. Rupp Associate Professor in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, OH. She received her B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Connecticut in 2011. She spent two years as a consultant at the Connecticut Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, writing business plans for high-tech startup companies. Then in 2017, she earned her Ph.D. from Clemson University where her dissertation focused on the development of uranium-selective materials (resins and membranes) for environmental radiation detection. Prior to joining CWRU, she was a DOE Scholar at the US Department of Energy in the Nuclear Materials Information Program.