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In molecular solids derived from Prussian blue, intermetallic charge transfer is fostered through a cyano bridge two metal ions. In this study, isostructural trivalent lanthanide and tetravalent actinide Prussian blue analogs' valence orbitals are probed by soft X-ray absorption measurements.

Fundamental knowledge on intrinsic plutonium colloids is important for the prediction of plutonium behaviour in the geosphere and in engineered systems. The first synthetic route to obtain salt-free intrinsic plutonium colloids by ultrasonic treatment of PuO2 suspensions in pure water is reported. Kinetics showed that both chemical and mechanical effects of ultrasound contribute to the mechanism of Pu colloid formation. In the first stage, fragmentation of initial PuO2 particles provides larger surface contact between cavitation bubbles and solids. Furthermore, hydrogen formed during sonochemical water splitting enables reduction of Pu(IV) to more soluble Pu(III), which then re-oxidizes yielding Pu(IV) colloid. A comparative study of nanostructured PuO2 and Pu colloids produced by sonochemical and hydrolytic methods, has been conducted using HRTEM, Pu LIII-edge XAS, and O K-edge NEXAFS/STXM. Characterization of Pu colloids revealed a correlation between the number of Pu-O and Pu-Pu contacts and the atomic surface-to-volume ratio of the PuO2 nanoparticles. NEXAFS indicated that oxygen state in hydrolytic Pu colloid is influenced by hydrolysed Pu(IV) species to a greater extent than in sonochemical PuO2 nanoparticles. In general, hydrolytic and sonochemical Pu colloids can be described as core-shell nanoparticles composed of quasi-stoichiometric PuO2 cores and hydrolyzed Pu(IV) moieties at the surface shell.

The preparation of synthetic (Zr,U)SiO4 solid solution is challenging, as the conventional high-temperature solid-state method limits the solubility of uranium (4 ± 1 mol%) in the orthosilicate phase due to its thermodynamic instability. However, these compounds are of great interest as a result of (Zr,U)SiO4 solid solutions, with uranium contents exceeding this concentration, being observed as corium phases formed during nuclear accidents. It has been identified that hydrothermal synthesis pathways can be used for the formation of the metastable phase, such as USiO4. The investigation carried out in this study has indeed led to the confirmation of metastable (Zr,U)SiO4 compounds with high uranium contents being formed. It was found that (Zr,U)SiO4 forms a close-to-ideal solid solution with uranium loading of up to 60 mol% by means of hydrothermal treatment for 7 days at 250 °C, at pH = 3 and starting from an equimolar reactant concentration equal to 0.2 mol L−1. A purification procedure was developed to obtain pure silicate compounds. After purification, these compounds were found to be stable up to 1000 °C under an inert atmosphere (argon). The characterisation methods used to explore the synthesis and thermal stability included powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and Raman spectroscopies, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The electronic properties of actinide cations are of fundamental interest to describe intramolecular interactions and chemical bonding in the context of nuclear waste reprocessing or direct storage. The 5f and 6d orbitals are the first partially or totally vacant states in these elements, and the nature of the actinide ligand bonds is related to their ability to overlap with ligand orbitals. Because of its chemical and orbital selectivities, X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) is an effective probe of actinide species frontier orbitals and for understanding actinide cation reactivity toward chelating ligands. The soft X-ray probes of the light elements provide better resolution than actinide L3-edges to obtain electronic information from the ligand. Thus coupling simulations to experimental soft X-ray spectral measurements and complementary quantum chemical calculations yields quantitative information on chemical bonding. In this study, soft X-ray XAS at the K-edges of C and N, and the L2,3-edges of Fe was used to investigate the electronic structures of the well-known ferrocyanide complexes K4Fe(II)(CN)6, thorium hexacyanoferrate Th(IV)Fe(II)(CN)6, and neodymium hexacyanoferrate KNd(III)Fe(II)(CN)6. The soft X-ray spectra were simulated based on quantum chemical calculations. Our results highlight the orbital overlapping effects and atomic effective charges in the Fe(II)(CN)6 building block. In addition to providing a detailed description of the electronic structure of the ferrocyanide complex (K4Fe(II)(CN)6), the results strongly contribute to confirming the actinide 5f and 6d orbital oddity in comparison to lanthanide 4f and 5d.

Although hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) has been highly used in nuclear chemistry for more than 75 years, the preparation and literature description of tetravalent actinide peroxides remain surprisingly scarce. A new insight is given in this topic through the synthesis and thorough structural characterization of a new peroxo compound of Pu(IV). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Complex formation between uranyl ion, UO22+, and a hydrophilic anionic form of SO3-Ph-BTP4- ligand, L4-, in water was studied by liquid-liquid extraction experiments performed over a range of the ligand and HNO3 concentrations in the aqueous phase, at a constant concentration of nitrate anions at 25°C . The competition for UO22+ ions between the lipophilic TODGA extractant and the hydrophilic L4- ligand leads to the decrease in the uranyl distribution ratios, D, with an increasing L4- concentration. The model of the solvent extraction process used accounts - apart from uranyl complexation by TODGA and SO3-Ph-BTP4- - also for uranyl complexation by nitrates and for the decrease in the concentration of the free L4- ligand in the aqueous phase, due to its protonation, bonding in the uranyl complex and the distribution between the two liquid phases. The unusually strong dependence of the D values on the acidity, found in the experiment, could hardly be explained as due to L4- protonation merely. Three hypotheses were experimentally tested, striving to interpret the data in terms of additional extraction to the organic phase of ion associates of protonated TODGA cation with either partly protonated anionic L4- ligands or anionic UO22+ complexes with NO3 - or L4-. None of them has been confirmed. The analysis of the results, based on the formal correction of free ligand concentrations, points to the formation of 1 : 1 and 1 : 2 uranyl - SO3-Ph-BTP complexes in the aqueous phase. The conditional formation constant of the 1:1 complex has been determined, logßL,1 = 2.95 ± 0.15.

Although ZrSiO4 is the most well-known compound in the zircon-structured family (space group I41/amd), the experimental conditions for preparing pure and well-crystallized phases that are doped with a tetravalent element via hydrothermal synthesis have never been clearly discussed in the literature. With the aim to answer this question, the experimental conditions of the preparation of ZrSiO4 and (Zr,Ce)SiO4 were investigated in order to synthesize well-crystallized and pure phases. A multiparametric study has been carried out using soft hydrothermal conditions with variables including reactant concentration, initial pH of the reactive medium, and duration of the hydrothermal treatment. Pure ZrSiO4 was obtained through hydrothermal treatment for 7 days at 250 °C, within a large acidity range (1.0 ≤ pH ≤ 9.0) and starting from CSi ≈ CZr ≥ 0.2 mol L−1. As hydrothermally prepared zircon structured phases can be both hydrated and hydroxylated, its annealed form was also studied after heating to 1000 °C. Based on these results, the synthesis of (Zr,Ce)SiO4 solid solutions was also investigated. The optimal hydrothermal conditions to acquire pure and crystallized phases were as follows: 7 days at 250 °C with initial pH = 1 and concentration of the reactants equal to 0.2 mol L−1. This led to Zr1−xCexSiO4 solid solutions with the incorporated Ce content up to 40 mol%. Samples were characterized using multiple methods, including laboratory and synchrotron PXRD, IR and Raman spectroscopies, SEM, and TGA. Moreover, it was found that these phases were thermally stable in air up to at least 1000 °C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Actinide colloids and nanoparticles (NPs) currently constitute a topic of strong interest due to their potential role in advanced nuclear energetics and the environmental migration of radioactivity. A better understanding of the physico-chemical properties of nanoscale actinide oxides requires robust synthesis approaches. In this work, UO2+x NPs were successfully prepared by sonochemistry from U(IV) solutions previously stabilised in a hydrochloric medium (20 kHz, 65 °C, Ar/(10%)CO). Colloidal suspensions were found to be composed of crystalline and spherical NPs showing a UO2-like structure and measuring 18.0 ± 0.1 nm (SAXS, HR-TEM and PXRD techniques). In comparison with the controlled hydrolysis approach used as a reference, sonochemistry appears to be a simple and original synthesis route providing larger, better defined and more crystalline UO2+x NPs with a narrower size distribution. These well-defined NPs offer new opportunities for the preparation of reference actinide materials devoted to fundamental, technological and environmental studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New insights are provided about the formation mechanism of PuO2 nanoparticles (NPs) by investigating an unprecedented kinetic isotope effect observed during their hydrolytic synthesis in H2O or D2O and attributed to OH/OD zero point energy difference. The signature of a Pu(IV) oxo–hydroxo hexanuclear cluster, appearing as an important intermediate during the formation of the 2 nm PuO2 NPs (synchrotron SAXS/XAS), is further revealed indicating that their formation is controlled by H-transfer reactions occurring during hydroxo to oxo-bridge conversions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The coordination and redox chemistry of aqueous CeIV/III macrocyclic compounds were studied by using the ligands DOTA and DOTP (1,4,7,10‐tetraazacyclododecane‐1,4,7,10‐tetrayl)tetraacetic acid and 1,4,7,10‐tetraazacyclododecane‐1,4,7,10‐tetra(methylene phosphonic acid), respectively). The hydrolysis tendency of the tetravalent cation in the presence of DOTA is shown to result in the formation of a highly ordered, fluorite‐like [CeIV6(O)4(OH)4(H2O)8(DOTAH)4] oxo‐hydroxo structure both in solution and in the solid state. The lifetime of the analogous species formed in the presence of DOTP was found to be much shorter. Spectroscopic measurements of the latter suggest its similarity to the former. Its gradual decomposition in solution leads to the accumulation of the in‐cage complexes [CeIVDOTP] and [CeIIIDOTP(H2O)], which were crystallographically characterized in this study. The redox energetics and spectroscopic characteristics for the transition between these two in‐cage complexes in aqueous solutions were studied as well. Together with the crystallographic structures of the above‐mentioned species, the in‐cage [CeIVDOTA(H2O)] complex structure is presented herein for the first time. An elaborative analysis of the X‐ray crystallographic structural data obtained for the in‐cage complexes studied herein and similar structures published previously suggests that hard‐bonding cyclen‐derived ligands are, counter‐intuitively, better suited for encapsulating, and perhaps kinetically stabilize softer cations than harder ones with DOTP, marked as a possible adequate chelator for the study of the aqueous properties of LnII and AcIII cations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the framework of nuclear waste disposal, it is very important to well understand the behavior of actinides in the presence of the common environmental inorganic ligands such as sulfate and chloride. In rids work, the An[O.sub.2]S[O.sub.4.sup.-] and An[O.sub.2]Cl 1-1 complexes have been evidenced by capillary electrophoresis-inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (CE-ICPMS) in perchlorate/chloride and in perchlorate/sulfate media for An = Np and Pu. Their binding constants have been measured: [MATHEMATICAL EXPRESSION NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]. These results are consistent with published values for Np(V). They confirm the expected analogy between Np(V) and Pu(V) for the weak bonding with chloride ligand, [log.sub.10] [MATHEMATICAL EXPRESSION NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII], attributed to mainly electrostatic interactions. Conversely, a slight shift is observed for the bonding with sulfate ligand, [log.sub.10] [MATHEMATICAL EXPRESSION NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII], indicating that some covalency might stabilize the sulfate complexes.

The thermodynamic properties of actinide(III) salt solutions at high concentrations and 25 degree Celsius are explored and a new solution of the binding mean spherical approximation (BIMSA) theory is used to reproduce experimental osmotic coefficient variation with concentration for three binary salt solutions. The molecular dynamics (MD) results are used for discussing the parameters used in the BIMSA.

The first structural studies of protactinium(V) in sulfuric and hydrofluoric acid media using X-ray absorption spectroscopy was presented. The results show that the absence of the trans-dioxo bond that characterizes the other early actinide element such as U dnd Np.

Sonochemistry studies chemical and physical effects in liquids submitted to power ultrasound. These effects arise not from a direct interaction of molecules with sound waves, but rather from the acoustic cavitation: the nucleation, growth, and implosive collapse of microbubbles in liquids submitted to power ultrasound. The violent implosion of bubbles leads to the formation of chemically reactive species. In principle, each cavitation bubble can be considered as a microreactor initiating chemical reactions at mild conditions. In addition, microjets and shock waves accompanied bubble collapse produce fragmentation, dispersion and erosion of solid surfaces or particles. Microbubbles oscillating in liquids also enable nucleation and precipitation of nanosized actinide compounds with specific morphology. This review focuses on the versatile sonochemical processes with actinide ions and particles in homogenous solutions and heterogenous systems. The redox reactions in aqueous solutions, dissolution or precipitation of refractory solids, synthesis of actinide nanoparticles, and ultrasonically driving decontamination are considered. The guideline for further research is also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[An.sup.IV] [Fe.sup.II] [(CN).sub.6].x[H.sub.2]O (An = Th, U, Np) molecular compounds have been prepared by precipitation from acidic media. These microcrystalline compounds have been characterized by infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and X-ray absorption spectroscopy. They have been found to be isostructural with the [Ln.sup.III]K[Fe.sup.II][(CN).sub.6].4[H.sub.2]O compounds. The molecular structures of these compounds are presented and their chemical formulas are given: in all compounds, the Fe[(CN).sub.6] octabedra is conserved and the An ion is linked to the N atoms of the CN ligands. The formal oxidation states are also discussed. Key words: hexacyanoferrate, actinide, EXAFS, XANES, X-ray absorption spectroscopy.

A spectroelectrochemical setup has been developed to investigate radioactive elements in small volumes (0.7 to 2 ml) under oxidation–reduction (redox) controlled conditions by X‐ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS). The cell design is presented together with in situ XAS measurements performed during neptunium redox reactions. Cycling experiments on the NpO22+/NpO2+ redox couple were applied to qualify the cell electrodynamics using XANES measurements and its ability to probe modifications in the neptunyl hydration shell in a 1 mol l−1 HNO3 solution. The XAS results are in agreement with previous structural studies and the NpO22+/NpO2+ standard potential, determined using Nernst methods, is consistent with measurements based on other techniques. Subsequently, the NpO2+, NpO22+ and Np4+ ion structures in solution were stabilized and measured using EXAFS. The resulting fit parameters are again compared with other results from the literature and with theoretical models in order to evaluate how this spectroelectrochemistry experiment succeeds or fails to stabilize the oxidation states of actinides. The experiment succeeded in: (i) implementing a robust and safe XAS device to investigate unstable radioactive species, (ii) evaluate in a reproducible manner the NpO22+/NpO2+ standard potential under dilute conditions and (iii) clarify mechanistic aspects of the actinyl hydration sphere in solution. In contrast, a detailed comparison of EXAFS fit parameters shows that this method is less appropriate than the majority of the previously reported chemical methods for the stabilization of the Np4+ ion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studying the speciation of Pu(IV) in very alkaline and silicate ion rich reactive media allowed identification of the formation of plutonium(IV)-silicate colloidal suspensions which were stable for months. These colloids were stabilized in aqueous solution for pH > 13 and for concentrations around 10−2 mol L−1. Successive filtration processes allowed evaluation of their size, which was found to be smaller than 6 nm. Their structural characterization by XAS evidenced that their structure was similar to those identified for the other tetravalent actinide-silicate colloidal systems like thorium, uranium and neptunium. Their formation could explain the increase of plutonium solubility usually observed in alkaline silicate-rich solutions and could affect the plutonium mobility as a result in contaminated sites or in other environmental permeable media. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[H7O3]4[Tc20O68] ⋅ 4H2O [1] was prepared from an aqueous Tc2O7 solution concentrated over anhydrous H2SO4. [Tc20O68]4− is the first polyanionic species to be reported for Tc. The unit cell contains one centrosymmetric [Tc20O68]4− polyanion as well as hydronium ions and water molecules. The core of the structure consists of four Tc(V)O6 octahedra that form a square Tc4O4 ring. The four Tc(V)O6 octahedra are decorated by sixteen Tc(VII)O4 tetrahedra. Calculations show the bonding within the Tc4O4 ring to consist of a 3‐center bond formed between each neighboring pair of Tc atoms and their bridging oxygen. Calculations also indicate that a strong d→d electronic transition at 513 nm is the origin of the red color of [1]. The characterization of red HTcO4 solutions by X‐ray absorption spectroscopy has complemented the description of this compound in aqueous solution. The formation mechanisms in solution, including the possible role of technetium's radioactivity in the formation of [1], are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]