Process for separating americium and curium from rare earth elements

Claim 1

A PROCESS FOR RECOVERING ACTINIDE VALUES SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF AMERICIUM AND CURIUM VALUES FROM AN ACIDIC AQUEOUS SOLUTION CONTAINING SAID VALUES TOGETHER WITH RARE EARTH VALUES COMPRISING THE STEPS OF PROVIDING LITHIUM NITRATE IN A CONCENTRATION OF AT LEAST 6 MOLES IN SAID SOLUTION; CONTACTING THE RESULTING AQUEOUS SOLUTION WITH AN ANION EXCHANGE RESIN WHEREBY SAID ACTINIDE AND RARE EARTH VALUES ARE SORBED ON SAID RESIN; CONTACTING THE RESULTING LOADED RESIN WITH AN AQUEOUS SOLUTION CONTAINING LITHIUM CHLORIDE IN A CONCENTRATION OF AT LEAST 9 MOLAR WHEREBY A MAJOR PORTION OF SAID SORBED RARE EARTH VALUES ARE ELUTED FROM SAID RESIN; CONTACTING THE RESULTING PARTIALLY-LOADED RESIN WITH A DILUTE AQUEOUS SOLUTION OF LITHIUM CHLORIDE, THE CONCENTRATION OF LITHIUM CHLORIDE IN SAID DILUTE SOLUTION BEING LESS THAN 5 MOLAR, WHEREBY ACTINIDE AND A MINOR PORTION OF RARE EARTH VALUES ARE ELUTED FROM SAID PARTIALLY-LOADED RESIN AND TRANSFERRED INTO SAID DILUTE LITHIUM CHLORIDE SOLUTION; SEPARATING THE RESULTING ACTINIDE AND RARE EARTH VALUE-CONTAINING AQUEOUS SOLUTION FROM THE STRIPPED RESIN; INCREASING THE CONCENTRATION OF LITHIUM CHLORIDE IS SAID SEPARATED SOLUTION; TO A VALUE GREATER THAN 8 MOLAR CONTACTING THE RESULTING LITHIUM CHLORIDE-LOADED AQUEOUS SOLUTION WITH A SUBSTANTIALLY WATER-IMMISCIBLE ORGANIC SOLUTION COMPRISING AN ORGANIC DILUENT AND A MONOALKYLOPHOSPHORIC ACID WHEREBY RARE EARTH VALUES ARE TRANSFERRED FROM THE AQUEOUS SOLUTION INTO SAID ORGANIC SOLUTION; SEPARATING THE REMAINING AQUEOUS SOLUTION FROM THE RESULTING ORGANIC SOLUTION AND RECOVERING ACTINIDE VALUES FROM SAID SEPARATED AQUEOUS SOLUTION.