Separation of potassium from sodium in alkaline solution by solvent extraction with 4-tert-butyl-2-(α-methylbenzyl) phenol

This work investigated the separation of potassium from sodium in alkaline solution using substituted phenol-based extradants. Superior potassium extraction was achieved with 4-tert-butyl-2-( α -methylbenzyl) phenol ( t -BAMBP) than 4-sec-butyl-2-( α -methylbenzyl) phenol (BAMBP). The optimum conditions for the extraction were 1 mol/L t -BAMBP, 3:1 volumetric phase ratio (O/A), and two extraction stages. After cross-current extraction, the extraction ratio of potassium reached 90.8%. After scrubbing with deionised water at phase ratio of 4:1 and scrubbing stage of 4, a sodium scrubbing efficiency of 88.2% was obtained. After stripping using 1 mol/L H 2 SO 4 at phase ratio of 3:1, the stripping efficiency of potassium reached 94.2%. The potassium/sodium (K/Na) concentration ratio increased 14.3 times from 0.15 in the feed solution to 2.3 in the stripping solution. The efficient separation of potassium from sodium in alkaline solution was achieved via solvent extraction with t -BAMBP.