TRANSPORT OF TE4+ THROUGH LIQUID SURFACTANT MEMBRANE USING D2EHPA AS THE CARRIER

A preliminary study of Te4+ transport through liquid surfactant membrane using di(2-ethylhexyl) phosphoric acid (D2EHPA) as the carrier and kerosene as the diluent has been made in a batch extractor. Extraction rate is studied as a function of stripping phase acid concentration, ratio of emulsion volume to external aqueous phase volume, Blot number, etc. A diffusion controlled, film model is proposed for the above system which adequately describes the permeation mechanism of the metal through the membrane. The model takes into account both the continuous phase and membrane phase resistances in the form of a Blot number. The computed results are found to be in good agreement with the experimental data. The continuous phase resistance is found to be the controlling factor for tellurium extraction under the present experimental conditions.