Polyurethane foam for the extraction of rhodium and its separation from iridium

The rate of reaction of rhodium with thiocyanate at 90 degrees in the presence of lithium chloride or sufficient hydrochloric acid and the subsequent extraction of the metal from hydrochloric acid medium by polyether-type polyurethane foam was investigated. The effect of the chloride salts of different cations decreased in the order Li(+) > Na(+) > K(+) indicating that Rh(SCN)(6)(3-) is extracted through a simple solvent-extraction mechanism rather than the "cation-chelation" mechanism. The separation of rhodium and iridium was also examined and the results indicated that in the presence of 5-fold excess of iridium, an average of 95 +/- 2% iridium remained in the aqueous phase while an average of 93 +/- 2% rhodium was retained by the foam.