Trypsin-modified amidoxime improves the adsorption selectivity of uranium

Amidoxime is publicly acknowledged well-performed uranium adsorption material at present. However, its uranium adsorption is limited due to the influence of other metal ions. Protein has abundant amino and carboxyl and has high selectivity for a specific ion. Yet, it has not been used as an adsorbent only for seawater uranium extraction. Here, amidoxime and protein are combined to fabricate a composite film material (TB@PAO) to extract uranium from seawater. The simulated seawater experiment shows that the uranyl adsorption capacity of TB@PAO is 11.24 mg center dot g(- 1), which is 4 times vanadium adsorption and 7 times iron adsorption. The uranyl's adsorption distribution coefficient is 1.5 x 10(5), suggesting TB@PAO has high uranyl adsorption affinity. This work does not only provide an adsorbent for seawater uranium extraction, but also offer a way for the design of a highly selective seawater uranium extraction material.

Automated summary

Amidoxime is a well-performing uranium adsorption material, but its capability is limited by the presence of other metal ions. Proteins, with their abundant amino and carboxyl groups, possess high selectivity for specific ions and have not been utilized as adsorbents for seawater uranium extraction. In this study, a composite film material (TB@PAO) was fabricated by combining amidoxime and protein to extract uranium from seawater. The simulated seawater experiment showed that TB@PAO had a uranyl adsorption capacity of 11.24 mg center dot g(- 1), which is 4 times that of vanadium adsorption and 7 times that of iron adsorption. The uranyl's adsorption distribution coefficient was 1.5 x 10(5), indicating a high uranyl adsorption affinity of TB@PAO. This work not only provides an adsorbent for seawater uranium extraction but also offers a pathway for designing highly selective seawater uranium extraction materials.