Reducing the Competition: A Dual-Purpose Ionic Liquid for the Extraction of Gallium from Iron Chloride Solutions

The separation of gallium from iron by solvent extraction from chloride media is challenging because the anionic chloridometalates, FeCl(4)(-)and GaCl4-, display similar chemical properties. However, we report here that the selective separation of gallium from iron in HCl solution can be achieved using the dual-purpose ionic liquid methyltrioctylammonium iodide in a solvent extraction process. In this case, the reduction of Fe(3+)to Fe(2+)by the iodide counterion was found to inhibit Fe transport, facilitating quantitative Ga extraction by the ionic liquid with minimal Fe extraction from 2 M HCl.