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Takao Lab
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A lab that uses uranium chemistry to turn spent nuclear fuel into a resource.
AboutAbout the lab
Actinide chemistry for the nuclear fuel cycle.
The Takao Lab studies the coordination chemistry and solution chemistry of actinide elements, including uranium, and related elements.
It aims at the proper treatment, disposal, and recycling of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste, the so-called "nuclear waste."
The lab designs ligands that bind to metal ions and builds mechanisms that precipitate or extract only the target elements.
It values not only technologies for cleaning up afterward, but also basic research of high academic value that opens up future prospects.
Key terms
- Actinides
- A group of heavy elements, such as uranium and plutonium, that sit in the same row of the periodic table.
- Ligand
- A molecule or ion that binds to a metal ion to form a complex.
- Reprocessing
- Separating and recovering uranium and other materials that can still be used as fuel from spent nuclear fuel.
NewsLab news
Co-authored paper on the redox chemistry of actinide complexes published in Dalton Trans.
Accepting lab visits and consultations about going on to graduate school at the School of Materials and Chemical Technology lab tour
Accepting lab visits and consultations at the graduate school information session of the Nuclear Engineering Course
Co-authored paper on ligands for uranium recovery from seawater published in Adv. Sci.
Review on the interaction between actinides and biologically relevant molecules published in Dalton Trans.
ResearchResearch themes
Based on the coordination chemistry and solution chemistry of actinide elements, including uranium, and related elements, the lab aims at the proper treatment, disposal, and recycling of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. Its research rests on three pillars: the sustainable securing of nuclear fuel materials, the effective use of depleted uranium, and the treatment of radioactive waste.
*Illustrative imageSelectively precipitating nuclear fuel material
When cyclic amide compounds such as N-alkyl-2-pyrrolidones are added to an aqueous nitric acid solution, the fission products stay dissolved while only the uranium selectively precipitates as a pale yellow powder. Based on this phenomenon, the lab is working to lay the foundation for a simple reprocessing technology for spent nuclear fuel.
*Illustrative imageRecovering uranium from seawater
The amount of uranium in seawater is extremely small, but because the volume of seawater is enormous, the total is about 1,000 times the uranium resources on land. The lab designs molecules that coordinate specifically to uranium, and is demonstrating complex formation under conditions simulating seawater and developing resin-based adsorbents.
*Illustrative imageUsing surplus uranium as a resource
The lab is exploring ways to use depleted uranium, produced in large quantities in nuclear fuel manufacturing, and recovered uranium from reprocessing as resources rather than waste. Examples include catalysis that takes advantage of uranium's Lewis acid "hardness" and photochemical properties, and basic research on redox flow batteries that store nighttime electricity.
*Illustrative imageBasic chemistry for geological disposal
For the geological disposal of high-level radioactive waste, it is necessary to know how radionuclides move when they come into contact with groundwater. The lab clarifies the complex formation behavior of actinides in aqueous solutions simulating groundwater, making full use of various analytical methods and computational chemistry.
MembersFaculty
The members of the Takao Lab consist of faculty, doctoral and master's students, and international exchange students.As of 2026
- Associate ProfessorKoichiro TakaoPublications ↗
VoicesStudent voices
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Report an errorAbout the images
The top and research theme images are illustrative and were not taken at the lab. They are cropped from Wikimedia Commons images. Cropped CC BY-SA images are provided under the same CC BY-SA license as the original (version shown on each line).
- Top image: “Cross-section of TRISO fuel pellet” ENERGY.GOV / Public domain (cropped)
- Selectively precipitating nuclear fuel material: “Yellow Cake Uranium ( )” Nuclear Regulatory Commission from US / Public domain (cropped)
- Recovering uranium from seawater: “Cloudscape Over the Philippine Sea” NASA / Public domain (cropped)
- Using surplus uranium as a resource: “Vanadium Redox flow battery” Radiotrefoil / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Basic chemistry for geological disposal: “Yucca Mountain tunnel” Nuclear Regulatory Commission / CC BY 2.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (塚原研究室): “Rareearthoxides” Peggy Greb, US department of agriculture / Public domain (cropped)
- Related lab (村橋・
山本研究室): “Palladium (Element - 46) 1” James St. John / CC BY 2.0 (cropped) - Related lab (中島裕美子研究室): “Dichloro(1,3-bis(diphenylphosphino)propane)nickel complex ball” Jynto (more from this user) / CC0 (cropped)
- Related lab (菅野･鈴木･松井研究室): “Maarja Paalo uses a glovebox” Tavoromann / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
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