ISSN(Online): 2319-8753 ISSN (Print): 2347-6710 International Journal of Innovative Research in Science, Engineering and Technology (A High Impact Factor, Monthly Peer Reviewed Journal) Vol. 5, Issue 1, January 2016 Copyright to IJIRSET DOI:10.15680/IJIRSET.2015.0501033 265 Synthesis of Potassium Nickel Hexacyanoferrate Encapsulated Polymeric Beads for Extraction of Cesium Anant B. Kanagare 1, 2 , Krishan Kant Singh 1 , G. Kiran Kumar 3 , Vaishali S. Shinde 2 Manmohan Kumar 1 Research Scholar, Radiation and Photochemistry Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai,India 1 Department of Chemistry, Savitribai Phule Pune University, Pune, India 2 , Scientific Assistant, Radiation and Photochemistry Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai, India 1 Scientific Assistant, Analytical Chemistry Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai, India 3 Professor, Department of Chemistry, Savitribai Phule Pune University, Pune¸ India 2 Scientific Officer, Radiation and Photochemistry Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai, India 1 ABSTRACT: A novel potassium nickel hexacyanoferrate (KNiHCF) sorbent-encapsulated polymeric beads (SEPBs) were synthesized by phase inversion method, characterized by various techniques viz. FTIR, optical microscopy, SEM and TGA, and used for extraction of cesium. Polyether sulfone was used to encapsulate the KNiHCF sorbent. The batch extraction method was used, to study the effect of different physical parameters on the extraction process. The kinetics measurement suggests about 200 min equilibration time was sufficient to extract maximum amount of cesium from solution. Various kinetic and isotherm models were used for analysis of the extraction data, which is found to fit well in the pseudo-second-order model and the Langmuir isotherm model. The experimental maximum sorption capacity was found to be ~22.5 mg/g which is very close to the theoretical monolayer capacity ~ 23.1 mg/g for the dry SEPBs. KEYWORDS: Cesium, Sorption, Radioactive acidic waste, KNiHCF, SEPBs. I. INTRODUCTION Cesium radioisotopes 134 Cs and 137 Cs are often located in aqueous radioactive wastes generated from nuclear reactors and some research institutes, mostly at levels beyond the standards. The radiochemical laboratories produce large volumes of radiotoxic liquid wastes. 137 Cs is an important nuclear fission products present in the radioactive waste sewage resulting from the reprocessing of nuclear fuels. In this context, the separation and recovery of 137 Cs present in aqueous wastes is a major challenge and a great environmental concern [1].Cesium is chemically analogous with sodium and ingestion of its radioisotopes results in accumulation in the soft tissues of the body, consequently affecting the reproductive system. Therefore, cesium-containing radioactive wastes have to be adequately treated before discharging into the environment. Researchers have been taking effort on developing prominent solutions towards the removal of radioactive cesium from various nuclear streams. Techniques, such as precipitation, solvent extraction, volatilization and adsorption using inorganic ion exchange have been extensively used for tackling this problem [2-5]. Among these ion exchange methods, particularly employing aluminosilicates, phosphates, hydrous oxides of multivalent cations, pillared clays and ferrocyanides, have been evaluated for removal of cesium [5-7]. Adsorption is a feasible technique to eliminate radioactive species from water contaminated through radioisotopes. Zeolites and insoluble metal ferrocyanides [8] are well known adsorbents for capturing 137 Cs ions specifically. The incorporation of Cs into hexacyanoferrates (HCFs) of divalent transition metal cations is one of the most practical methods of cesium removal. HCFs have a first preference over other materials due to their selectivity and high capacity [9, 10]. Hence, large amount of these compounds have been used as precipitants for all alkali metal cations, particularly cesium, to strip off those from aqueous radioactive wastes [11-15]. Inorganic ion exchangers are well known for their good thermal and radiation stabilities in addition to compatibility with the matrices generally used for final encapsulation. It