Feasibility of Recovering Rare Earth Elements

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Feasibility of Recovering Rare Earth Elements

The DOE-NETL Rare Earth Element (REE) Program began in 2014, and is focused on extracting, separating and recovering REEs from coal and coal by-products.

Rare earth elements (REEs) are essential dual use materials that are incorporated into many of today’s components ...

…… and are paving the way for future technology innovation and integration.

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REE Program Goals

Validate the technical and economic feasibility of domestic small pilot-scale facilities to produce high purity rare earth elements and critical materials from coal and coal-based resources

Success Stories

New Rare Earth Element (REE) Extraction Tests Show Promise for Efficiency & Cost Saving

NETL-supported research at the West Virginia Research Corporation shows that nearly 100 percent of all REEs in coal-based acid mine drainage (AMD) can be recovered at high purity, and progress along the pathway to commercialization

Jessica Mullen, Federal Project Manager, NETL
Paul Ziemkiewicz, West Virginia University

The Power of Plasma: Extracting REES from Coal

Plasma technology integrated with traditional leaching and extraction processes was shown by the University of Kentucky and their subcontractor Virginia Tech to recover rare earth elements from coal samples. Moving forward, the challenge for NETL and its partners is refinement and discovering how to make this process economically attractive by industry.

Jason Hissam, Federal Project Manager, NETL
Dr. Rick Honaker, University of Kentucky Research Foundation

Concentrating Rare Earth Elements in Acid Mine Drainage Using Coal Combustion Products through Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation

Researchers from Ohio State University have demonstrated that a conceptual three-stage trap-extract-precipitate (TEP) process can successfully recover rare earth elements (REEs) from coal mine drainage (CMD). The team from Ohio State has been working closely with several key stakeholders in the region, including those from the public sector (Ohio Department of Natural Resources and City of Columbus), power generation industry (American Electric Power), and non-for-profit organizations (The Wilds).

Karol Schrems & Anthony Zinn, Federal Project Manager, NETL
Chin-Min Cheng, John Lenhart, Jeffrey Bielicki, Tarunjit Butalia,
Department of Civil, Environmental and Geodetic Engineering
The Ohio State University

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