Abstract Tributyl phosphate (TBP) is the most widely used extractant in the nuclear fuel cycle. It is used both in the front-end and back-end of the nuclear fuel cycle for separation and purification of nuclear materials. It is also used for solvent extraction of other metal ions such as lithium, cobalt and nickel. Synthesis of TBP involves highly exothermic reaction of n-butanol with phosphorus oxychloride. It is conventionally carried out using a batch/semi-batch process. We report, for the first time, a continuous method to synthesize TBP in a microreactor. The product yield was observed to increase with an increase in the residence time and the reaction temperature.100% yield was obtained for a residence time of 44 min at reaction temperature of 60 °C in the microreactor having a T-junction micromixer. The space-time-yield and production rate at these conditions were 13270.67 kg/day-m3 and 41.02 gm/day, respectively. Two different types of micromixers (T-junction micromixer and split-and-recombine micromixer) were compared. CFD simulations to quantify mixing in micromixers were also performed to have more insights into the experimental trends.

中文翻译：

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微反应器连续合成磷酸三丁酯

摘要 磷酸三丁酯（TBP）是核燃料循环中应用最广泛的萃取剂。它用于核燃料循环的前端和后端，用于核材料的分离和纯化。也用于锂、钴、镍等其他金属离子的溶剂萃取。TBP 的合成涉及正丁醇与磷酰氯的高度放热反应。它通常使用分批/半分批工艺进行。我们首次报道了一种在微反应器中合成 TBP 的连续方法。观察到产物产率随着停留时间和反应温度的增加而增加。在具有 T 型接头微混合器的微反应器中，在 60°C 的反应温度下停留 44 分钟，获得 100% 的产率。这些条件下的时空产量和生产率分别为 13270.67 kg/day-m3 和 41.02 gm/day。比较了两种不同类型的微混合器（T 型接头微混合器和拆分和重组微混合器）。还进行了 CFD 模拟以量化微混合器中的混合，以更深入地了解实验趋势。