Coulometric determination of uranium in perchloric acid medium and its applications

Abstract

A cotrolled potential coulometric method has been developed in 1M HClO₄ for the determination of uranium using an electrolysis cell and coulometer. A noteworthy feature of this method is its applicability even in the presence of large excess of calcium, barium and lead, situations where the commonly used coulometric method in 0.5M H₂SO₄ medium and the well known potentiometric method in H₃PO₄ medium are not applicable, Results of the determination of uranium in a number of aliquots of synthetic solutions of (U,Ca), (U, Ba) and (U, Pb) showed a precision of the order of 0.2% and the experimental values of uranium content agreed with the expected values within the precision limits. Similar results were obtained with samples of synthetic mixtures of U₃O₆ and CaF₂ powder containing 1–5% U and 95–99% Ca. The method was then successfully used to determine the U-conten of some typical samples of CaF₂ slag (containing 1–5% U) generated during the calciothermic reduction of UF₄ to U-metal at conversion plants.