Radioiodination of humic substances via azocoupling with 3-[125I] iodoaniline

Glutamic acid leaching of synthetic covellite - A model system combining experimental data and geochemical modeling

For Kupferschiefer mining established pyrometallurgical and acidic bioleaching methods face numerous problems. This is due to the finely grained and dispersed distribution of the copper minerals, the complex mineralogy, comparably low copper content, and the possibly high carbonate and organic content in this ore. Leaching at neutral pH seemed worth a try: At neutral pH the abundant carbonates do not need to be dissolved and therewith would not consume excessive amounts of provided acids. Certainly, copper solubility at neutral pH is reduced compared to an acidic environment; however, if copper complexing ligands would be supplied abundantly, copper contents in the mobile phase could easily reach the required economic level. We set up a model system to study the effect of parameters such as pH, microorganisms, microbial metabolites, and organic ligands on covellite leaching to get a better understanding of the processes in copper leaching at pH ≥ 6. With this model system we could show that glutamic acid and the microbial siderophore desferrioxamine B promote covellite dissolution. Both experimental and modeling data showed that pH is an important parameter in covellite dissolution. An increase of pH from 6 to 9 could elevate copper extraction in the presence of glutamic acid by a factor of five. These results have implications for both development of a biotechnological process regarding metal extraction from Kupferschiefer, and for the interaction of bacterial metabolites with the lithosphere and potential mobilization of heavy metals in alkaline environments.

Radioiodination of humic substances

The known IODO-GEN™-method [1] was adapted for radiolabeling of humic and fulvic acids with131I. The water insoluble oxidizing agent 1,3,4,6tetrachloro-3α,6α-diphenylglycoluril (IODO-GEN™) forms an iodous ion species (I+), which undergoes an electrophilic I/H-substitution on aromatic moieties of the humic and fulvic acids. This method offers mild conditions with a lesser extent of oxidative alterations of the target molecule, accompanied by an easy handling due to the virtual water-insolubility of the oxidizing agent. The method was optimized and different techniques were tested for the purification of the radioiodinated humic material. The yield of the labeling procedure varies between 45 and 75% depending on the provenance of the humic material and the applied purification method. A specific activity up to 40 MBq/mg was achieved. Furthermore, the known inherent photo-susceptibility of the iodinated humic substance and the influence of reducing agents were verified. An additional release of131I up to 20% and up to 35%, respectively were observed.