separating thorium from uranium

The Manhattan Project used anion exchange to separate thorium from uranium and other heavy elements, and the Soviets apparently used the same system during their atomic program.

According to the Journal of Analytical Chemistry of the USSR, Vol. 28, Part 3, p. 1240, uranium and a long list of elements are "completely absorbed by anion exchange resins in HCl solutions above 8, but thorium is not."

Although it may appear I know what I am talking about, I have no clue. Can someone rephrase the above in "normal English" and then explain the anion exchange method so that a layman (like myself) can understand how it works?

Bill Streifer



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