Separation of Heavy Metal Ions from Petroleum Ash Liquor Using Organic Resins and FT-IR Study of the Process

Heavy metal ions such as hafnium, zirconium, vanadium, nickel, iron, and uranium were separated from petroleum ash leach liquor using ion-exchange resins Dowex 1x8, A2S3B8, and Amberlite (IRA-420). The separation was studied using Fourier transform IR spectroscopy (FT-IR) to confirm the adsorption of the metal ions onto the organic resins. Possible reactions between the metal ions and organic resins were suggested on the basis of the FT-IR spectra. The results show that the Dowex resin takes up U, Hf, and Zr most efficiently. This fact can be attributed to the ability of the Dowex resin to reduce both vanadium(V) and iron(III) metal ions to the lower valence state. This reduction facilitates the absorption of U, Hf, and Zr ions. The results obtained by ICP-OES and FT-IR are compared.