Recycling of Ni(II)-citrate complexes using precipitation in alkaline solutions

When the excess of Ni(II) ions as compared to citrate concentration is used both Ni(II) ions and citrate can be precipitated in alkaline solutions. The ratio between Ni(II) and citrate in the precipitate and completeness of citrate precipitation depends on the ratio between the Ni(II) and citrate concentrations in the initial solution and its pH. The data of chemical analysis, potentiometric titration, FT-IR as well as visible spectrophotometric investigations suggest that Ni(II) in the insoluble compound is bound with three -COO- groups and -OH group of the citrate. The insoluble compound also contains SO4(2-) and hydroxides. The treatment of this precipitate with H2SO4 enables to recover a soluble Ni(II)-citrate complex, which can be reused in practice, and to remove the excess of Ni(II) in the form of insoluble Ni(OH)2.