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Review on Rhenium Ions Removal from Nuclear Wastewater as Radioactive Contaminants: Conventional and Hydride Technologies
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DOI：10.1007/s40831-026-01469-0.png)
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Abstract
En 中文
Due to its use in high-performance superalloys, catalysts, and nuclear technologies, rhenium, a rare and strategic transition metal, is increasingly found in nuclear wastewater. Rhenium is not radioactive, but it often coexists with radioactive contaminants in spent nuclear fuel and treatment effluents, which can harm the environment and cause radiotoxicity. This study provides a comprehensive overview of current knowledge regarding the removal of rhenium ions from nuclear wastewater by reviewing traditional treatment methods and advanced hydride-based technologies. Unlike previous research focused on rhenium recovery in mining or metallurgy, this work concentrates on its presence and removal in nuclear wastewater, comparing established methods with hydride techniques. The review first addresses the physicochemical properties, sources, and environmental impacts of rhenium. It then describes common technologies such as solvent extraction, ion exchange, membrane separation, chemical precipitation, pyrometallurgical and hydrometallurgical extraction, photocatalysis, biotechnology, and adsorption. The efficiency and selectivity of new hydride-based methods are examined. A comparative analysis highlights removal efficiency, sustainability, recyclability, and operational parameters like pH, temperature, dosage, and contact time. Adsorption provides good cost-effectiveness under various conditions, but ion exchange and solvent extraction remain the most effective for high-purity recovery. While hydride-based technologies require further optimization for large-scale use, they show promise for selective separation. Removal performance is heavily affected by wastewater composition and the presence of competing anions. Although current techniques achieve high removal rates, issues with scalability, operational costs, and environmental sustainability persist. Future research should focus on developing low-energy, recyclable, and selective solutions for nuclear wastewater treatment, especially hybrid processes combining hydride technology with adsorption or ion exchange.
Keywords:
Conventional treatment methods
Hydride technologies
Nuclear wastewater
Radioactive contaminants
Rhenium removal
Wastewater remediation
Journal
J
IF:
3.2
Papers:
297
Citations:
2.8K
Organization
Cited Papers