Trialkyl-phosphine oxide process

Chinese scientists used trialkyl phosphine oxides (TRPO) to remove long-lived radioactive nuclides from high-level liquid waste (67, 167). TRPO is the trademark of a Chinese commercial product, consisting of a mixture of several TRPO (with alkyl chains from hexyl to octyl). The TRPO process has been tested in China and at ITU in Karlsruhe (2, 168-174). 

The INET annular centrifugal contactors are being used to partition high-level liquid waste so that the back end of the nuclear fuel cycle can be simplified. In particular, the TRPO process has been developed at INET for this application (Song, 2000), where TRPO is the extractant in the process solvent. Also known as Cyanex 923, TRPO is a trialkyl phosphine oxide that is made commercially by Cytec Industries (formerly American Cyanamid). It has a high affinity for the actinides. Further... 

In this manner, for instance, the Shell hydroformylation process has been carried to commercial operation (see p. 22). The Shell catalyst (trialkyl phosphine/cobalt hydrocarbonyl), because of its high stability, is especially useful for working at lower CO partial pressures. Rhodium catalysts are also suitable for one-step alcohol syntheses they also catalyze the homogeneous hydrogenation of aldehyde groups [174, 253, 326, 327]. Rhodium catalysts also allow much higher reaction rates than cobalt catalysts. The reaction goes especially smoothly when the rhodium is added as carbonyl or in the form of its oxide. 

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