Recovering uranium from a uranyl nitrate solution

A method of recovering a useful metal from a solution of a nitrate salt of a metal cation or a metal oxycation using a system comprising a formation column having an inlet and an outlet nozzle, wherein the inlet is configured to admit solution of the the nitrate salt to the formation column in a dropwise fashion;

• a basket under the outlet nozzle;
• a catch tank under the basket;
• and a recirculation system comprising a first pump and a flow path between the catch tank and the formation column, the method comprising:
• adding the solution of the nitrate salt to the formation column, the solution of the nitrate salt being added in a dropwise fashion through the inlet, wherein the formation column contains a recirculating solution containing a base;
• allowing the nitrate salt in the solution to react with the base in the recirculating solution to produce a metal oxide salt or a metal hydroxide salt as a precipitate;
• allowing the precipitate and the recirculating solution to exit the formation column through the outlet nozzle;
• capturing the precipitate in the basket while recovering the recirculating solution in the catch tank;
• and
• pumping the recovered recirculating solution from the catch tank to the formation column with the first pump.