title: Preparation of phosphinate-based ionic liquids for rare earth recovery

authors: Sanders, Sinead

subjects: Rare earth elements

abstract: The rare earth elements are vital components in many modern technologies, including  green energy technology such as wind turbines and electric vehicles, however the  extraction and separation of these elements remains a problem. Due to the similar  chemical properties of these elements, achieving pure single elemental concentrations of the REEs is difficult, often requiring multiple steps in the separation process, as well as the use of large volumes of harmful organic solvents. With the demand of these elements projected to grow in the coming decades, greener and more efficient extraction and separation methods need to be developed. 

In this work, a series of hydrophobic ionic liquids were prepared through simple neutralisation and protonation reactions. The successful synthesis and characterisation of camphyl phenyl phosphinic acid is also described and used as an anion precursor in IL preparation. Five phosphinate-based ionic liquids were successfully prepared and tested for the separation of the rare earth elements, as well as for cobalt/nickel separations. Both liquid-liquid extraction methods using a neat IL, and column chromatography methods using supported ionic liquids were tested. Results showed selectivity towards the heavy rare earth elements, achieving a La/Yb separation factor as high as 55.3. For the liquid-liquid extraction experiments, La extraction efficiencies of 99% were achieved for a majority of the tested ILs. For the Yb column extractions, high extraction efficiencies were also achieved, ranging from 85.5 - 99.9%. Repeated extractions of cobalt and nickel showed the stability of the column, with minimal decrease in extraction efficiencies over 10 repeated runs, and an average separation factor of 2.79 across these runs.

text: Preparation of phosphinate-based ionic liquids for rare earth recovery The rare earth elements are vital components in many modern technologies, including  green energy technology such as wind turbines and electric vehicles, however the  extraction and separation of these elements remains a problem. Due to the similar  chemical properties of these elements, achieving pure single elemental concentrations of the REEs is difficult, often requiring multiple steps in the separation process, as well as the use of large volumes of harmful organic solvents. With the demand of these elements projected to grow in the coming decades, greener and more efficient extraction and separation methods need to be developed. 

In this work, a series of hydrophobic ionic liquids were prepared through simple neutralisation and protonation reactions. The successful synthesis and characterisation of camphyl phenyl phosphinic acid is also described and used as an anion precursor in IL preparation. Five phosphinate-based ionic liquids were successfully prepared and tested for the separation of the rare earth elements, as well as for cobalt/nickel separations. Both liquid-liquid extraction methods using a neat IL, and column chromatography methods using supported ionic liquids were tested. Results showed selectivity towards the heavy rare earth elements, achieving a La/Yb separation factor as high as 55.3. For the liquid-liquid extraction experiments, La extraction efficiencies of 99% were achieved for a majority of the tested ILs. For the Yb column extractions, high extraction efficiencies were also achieved, ranging from 85.5 - 99.9%. Repeated extractions of cobalt and nickel showed the stability of the column, with minimal decrease in extraction efficiencies over 10 repeated runs, and an average separation factor of 2.79 across these runs.

year: 2023

title: Knowledge management in a New Zealand tree farming company: Ambiguity and resistance to the “technology solution”

authors: Lowe, Alan

subjects: case studies

abstract: Purpose – Managers at the company attempt to implement a knowledge management information system in an attempt to avoid loss of expertise while improving control and efficiency. The paper seeks to explore the implications of the technological solution to employees within the company. 
Design/methodology/approach – The paper reports qualitative research conducted in a single organization. Evidence is presented in the form of interview extracts. 
Findings – The case section of the paper presents the accounts of organizational participants. The accounts reveal the workers' reactions to the technology-based system and something of their strategies of resistance to the system. These accounts also provide glimpses of the identity construction engaged in by these knowledge workers. The setting for the research is in a knowledge-intensive primary industry. Research was conducted through observation and interviews. 
Research limitations/implications – The issues identified are explored in a single case-study setting. Future research could look at the relevance of the findings to other settings. 
Practical implications – The case evidence presented indicates some of the complexity of implementation of information systems in organizations. This could certainly be seen as more evidence of the uncertainty associated with organizational change and of the need for managers not to expect an easy adoption of intrusive IT solutions. 
Originality/value – This paper adds empirical insight to a largely conceptual literature.

text: Knowledge management in a New Zealand tree farming company: Ambiguity and resistance to the “technology solution” Purpose – Managers at the company attempt to implement a knowledge management information system in an attempt to avoid loss of expertise while improving control and efficiency. The paper seeks to explore the implications of the technological solution to employees within the company. 
Design/methodology/approach – The paper reports qualitative research conducted in a single organization. Evidence is presented in the form of interview extracts. 
Findings – The case section of the paper presents the accounts of organizational participants. The accounts reveal the workers' reactions to the technology-based system and something of their strategies of resistance to the system. These accounts also provide glimpses of the identity construction engaged in by these knowledge workers. The setting for the research is in a knowledge-intensive primary industry. Research was conducted through observation and interviews. 
Research limitations/implications – The issues identified are explored in a single case-study setting. Future research could look at the relevance of the findings to other settings. 
Practical implications – The case evidence presented indicates some of the complexity of implementation of information systems in organizations. This could certainly be seen as more evidence of the uncertainty associated with organizational change and of the need for managers not to expect an easy adoption of intrusive IT solutions. 
Originality/value – This paper adds empirical insight to a largely conceptual literature.

year: 2007

title: Aihe Pepene

authors: Hart, Philip

abstract: Sharing the same illustrious whakapapa as his brother Reha Aperahama, Aihe Pepene was prominent when living in the Thames district before settling at Te Aroha in 1878. When speculators tried to acquire the Thames foreshore from Pepene and others in 1870, he became involved in the subsequent legal actions over unpaid promissory notes. Later he would acquire interests in many blocks of land, and received a steady income by leasing or selling these plus his share in the goldfields revenue. When the Aroha Block was considered by the land court for the last time, in 1878, he conducted the case for Ngati Rahiri.
He invested in four Hauraki goldfields, and was briefly an owner and skipper of two small river steamers, an unsuccessful endeavour that resulted in his being forced to sell more land to meet his debts. Once his 1880 and 1881 financial difficulties were resolved, no more such problems recurred. 
A leading rangatira in Hauraki generally as well as at Te Aroha, he would be elected to a Maori Committee that was soon revealed to have no significance. Closely involved with Pakeha, he assisted settlement, and his loyalty to the Crown was illustrated by his becoming an officer in the Thames Native Volunteer Corps. A member of the Church of England for many years, like many Maori he became a Mormon, a faith perhaps more appropriate to his private life, for he had more than one wife, notoriously eloping with the wife of a more senior rangatira despite already being married.

text: Aihe Pepene Sharing the same illustrious whakapapa as his brother Reha Aperahama, Aihe Pepene was prominent when living in the Thames district before settling at Te Aroha in 1878. When speculators tried to acquire the Thames foreshore from Pepene and others in 1870, he became involved in the subsequent legal actions over unpaid promissory notes. Later he would acquire interests in many blocks of land, and received a steady income by leasing or selling these plus his share in the goldfields revenue. When the Aroha Block was considered by the land court for the last time, in 1878, he conducted the case for Ngati Rahiri.
He invested in four Hauraki goldfields, and was briefly an owner and skipper of two small river steamers, an unsuccessful endeavour that resulted in his being forced to sell more land to meet his debts. Once his 1880 and 1881 financial difficulties were resolved, no more such problems recurred. 
A leading rangatira in Hauraki generally as well as at Te Aroha, he would be elected to a Maori Committee that was soon revealed to have no significance. Closely involved with Pakeha, he assisted settlement, and his loyalty to the Crown was illustrated by his becoming an officer in the Thames Native Volunteer Corps. A member of the Church of England for many years, like many Maori he became a Mormon, a faith perhaps more appropriate to his private life, for he had more than one wife, notoriously eloping with the wife of a more senior rangatira despite already being married.

year: 2016