Practical trainings, student assistants and theses

Platinum group metals (PGMs), particularly rhodium (Rh), palladium (Pd), and platinum (Pt), are regarded as the "vitamins" used in the modern industry. PGMs are crucial components of fuel cells, jewelry, computers, cell phones, automobile catalysts, etc. Their distinct physical and chemical characteristics, such as their corrosion resistance, chemical inertia, and catalytic activity, account for their extensive application and create alloys to enhance the characteristics of other transition metals. Because of their unique properties, PGMs are seldom replaced with other elements or compounds in applications. However, PGM deposits in the earth's crust are limited. The utilization of secondary resources, such as recycling waste materials, could mitigate the issue of PGM scarcity. Several conventional methods have been used for recovering PGM from secondary sources. Among the separation technologies, membrane separation offers the continuous and selective recovery of individual PGMs with no adverse environmental effects.
Supported liquid membranes (SLM) are a chemically driven membrane method in which a solvent phase contains an organic ligand that preferentially binds to a metal in the feed solution. The metal-ligand combination is subsequently diffusively carried across the membrane support and discharged into the receiving phase. This approach is particularly useful for metal ion separation because the organic carrier generates lipophilic metal-organic ligand complexes. This continuous permeation technique combines extraction and stripping procedures with less chemical reagents. The objective of the thesis work deals with the employment of task-specific organic ligands as carriers in the supported liquid membrane system for the selective recovery of platinum group metals from secondary source leachates and understanding the transport mechanism using different mathematical modeling approaches.

• Conduct literature research on supported liquid membranes using various organic carriers and their applications in metal recovery
• Design and conduct laboratory experiments using supported liquid membrane studies using task-specific organic carriers with several parameters such as pH, concentration, the thickness of membrane, feed solutions, etc.
• Analyse and interpret data on membrane selectivity, flux rates, fouling resistance, and metal recovery efficiency
• Optimize experimental conditions targeting high recovery rates for Platinum, Palladium, and Rhodium
• Prepare a thesis report and present findings at conferences or workshops

• Bachelor's degree in Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Environmental Engineering or related field
• Knowledge of hydrometallurgical processes and membrane separation technologies
• Knowledge of analytical techniques such as ICP-OES, AAS, or similar for metal concentration analysis
• Duration: 6 months
• Start Date: Start in 2025 is possible
• Funding: Remuneration according to HZDR internal regulations