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from bulk Carnotite/Gummite Uranium Ore
The Uranium contained in bulk Carnotite and associated Uranium ores can be easily extracted to form various Uranium compounds.
Wear proper safety equipment (gloves, dust mask, eye protection) when breaking the rock so you don't get rock fragments in your eye, or inhale piles of ore dust. Sift the crushed rock through a screen (a window screen or a spaghetti strainer will do). This will separate the large chunks from the fine, granular material. Weigh out 300 grams of the fine granular ore. A hard milling media is required, such as steel balls which are used here. This will reduce the ore into a very fine dust. This is necessary so the extraction chemicals will be able to react with the ore material. If Ball Milling is not done, very little Uranium will be extracted. After 2 hours of milling, the ore is as fine as Talcum powder. or dumping the barrel contents through a strainer. To begin, you'll need 200 grams of powdered Uranium ore, 50 grams of Sodium Carbonate, 25 grams of Sodium Bicarbonate (use Arm & Hammer Baking Soda) and 1000 ml of water. Place a large flask with the 1000 ml of water in it on a magnetic stirrer/hot plate, drop in a spinbar and heat to about 70-80ьз╕ C. Set the stir speed to maximum and slowly add each ingredient into the water while it is being stirred & heated. Let the mixture heat & stir overnight. After an hour, the heavy sediment will sink to the bottom leaving the cloudy extracted Uranium in a carbonate solution floating on top. Pour the cloudy Uranium solution through a fine filter being careful not to let the bottom sediment to stir up or get into the filter.
In our next experiment, we'll use Kerosene and thttp://www.unitednuclear.com/extract.htmhe Solvent Extraction method to remove the carbonate from the Uranium.
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