COMMUNICATIONS TO THE EDITOR
1986
Yol. TO
ION-EXCHANGE SEPARATION OF THE ALKALI
was then begun with 0.13 -V HCI a t a flow rate (GU. 0.3 ml./min.) slow enough to permit an apSir: proach to equilibrium conditions.' The effluent We wish to report preliminary results on the from the column was collected in a number of separation of alkali-metal ions by an ion-exchange fractions, each of which was radiometrically RbS6,and Cs13'. procedure, using the identical column and resin analyzed for The results are shown in Fig. 1. The autobed used by Mayer and Tompkins' in their 61-Eu separation (1.0 sq. cm. X 10.4 cm. colloidal ag- matically-recorded curve (normalized) is superimglomerates of Dowex-50; 2.83 g. oven-dried resin posed upon the block diagram and serves to locate weight; 8.84 ml. bed solution volume = one V- the valley between Na and K and the peak of K, unit') and a recording counter to assay the rela- both of which occurred while the column was unattended. The table a t the top of the figure shows tive activity in the effluent solution. METALS
Per cent. of each ion eluted from Dowex-50 with hydrochloric acid. -
--
Na
0 48 II 0
K
Rb
cs
0 8 16 0
0
0 0
0 0 31
A0
1
2
30
64
0
Start 0.3NHCL
itart ).EN
Automatically
/HCL
Elution Curve
II
L a r R a M
'p-p-+ $2
L I
I\
0
10
20
30
Fig. 1.-The
40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 120 130 Volume of eluate in V-units (One V-unit = 8.84 ml.) separation of the alkaii metal ions by elution from an ion exchanger.
140
150
A neutron-activated mixture of 1.0 mg. Na, 10 mg. K, 8 mg. Rb and 13 mg. Cs, in the form of their chlorides, was dissolved in water and absorbed on the hydrogen-form column. Elution
the relative purities and recoveries in the various fractions.
(1) S. W. Mayer and E. R. Tompkins, Tars JOURNAL, 60,2866 (1947). (2) B. D. Polis and J. G. Reinhold, J . Bid. Chem., 116, 231 (1944).
OAK RIDGE,TENNESSEE
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ , o p , , ~ E.~CoHN ~ o ~ ~ HAROLD W.KOHN
RECEIVED APRIL8,1948
