Simple route to secondary amides of phosphorylacetic acids and their use for extraction and sorption of actinides from nitric acid solutions

An efficient method for the synthesis of secondary alkylamides of phosphorylacetic acids (APA) was proposed. The method involves amidation of ethyl phosphorylacetates with primary aliphatic amines. The scope of reaction was determined. Reactions with ethylenediamine and 1,4-diaminobutane yield the corresponding bisamides; in the case of 1,3-diaminopropane, N-(3-aminopropyl)diphenylphosphorylacetamide or N,N′-propylenebis(diphenylphosphorylacetamide) was obtained, depending on the reaction conditions. The extraction of americium(III) complexes and the sorption of uranium(VI) by sorbents with physically sorbed APA from nitric acid solutions were studied. There is no correlation between the partition coefficient of americium(III) and the structure of APA; in the sorption of uranium(VI), the degree of extraction depends on the complexone structure.