The objectives of this project are to quantify, assess, and plan to enable the transformation of Uinta Basin earth resources such as coal, oil shale, resin, rare earth elements (REE), and critical materials into high-value metal, mineral, and carbon-based products that can be used in advanced products such as carbon fiber composites in aircraft and high-powered magnets and batteries in electric vehicles. The transformation begins with understanding the geology, which enables discovery of value-added resources, followed by innovative mining to optimize resource recovery, metallurgical processing to separate minerals and purify metals, chemical engineering to enable production of value-added carbon-based products, training and education to prepare the workforce, stakeholder engagement and outreach to facilitate sustainable development, and industry support to drive implementation and manufacturing.

• University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112
• Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO 80401             
• JWP Consulting, LLC, Sandy, UT 84092     
• Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM 87545         
• Utah Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Initiative, Kaysville, UT 84037     
• Utah Geological Survey, Salt Lake City, UT 84116         
• Utah State University Eastern, Price, UT 84501              
• Wolverine Fuels, LLC, Sandy, UT 84070

The Uinta basin contains important resources such as coal and rare earth elements as well as critical materials that can be used to produce high value products that play critical roles in important products that we need every day. These resources, many of which are imported, are needed to run the devices such as phones and cars in addition to critical defense equipment. The United States needs to find alternative resources for these critical materials. In addition, as we transition from fossil fuels, we need more of these critical materials for green energy production and use, and we need to be utilizing these fossil fuels in nonfuel products to support local economies in coal communities as well as to provide important needs domestically. This project is designed to provide important information to help understand these resources, associated processing, and the potential for utilization as well as related workforce needs.

The success of this project is integrally linked to the transformation of basin resources into products. The transformation begins with the geology, which enables discovery of value-added resources. The geology is followed by innovative mining to optimize resource recovery, metallurgical processing to separate minerals and purify metals, chemical engineering to enable production of value-added carbon-based products, training and education to prepare the workforce, stakeholder engagement and outreach to facilitate sustainable development, and industry support to drive implementation and manufacturing. The pathway to transforming these earth materials for advanced products depends on availability, processing methods, final product quantities and values as well as associated assessment and planning from this project.

This CORE-CM project focuses on the following six specific objectives: (1) basinal assessment of CORE-CM resources, (2) basinal strategies for reuse of waste streams, (3) basinal strategies for infrastructure, industries, and businesses, (4) technology assessment, development, and field testing, (5) technology innovation centers, and (6) stakeholder outreach and education.

This project study includes large-scale extraction of multiple resources that can, through integrated and innovative processing, be used to produce multiple value-added products and create new industries as well as a more diversified Uinta Basin economy. 

The Uinta Basin CORE-CM team has completed important assessments of resources, processing technologies, and workforce development needs and opportunities. The following is a summary of the accomplishments:

• An assessment of existing databases and extensive new sample analysis has been performed, collected, and analyzed. ~3500 new pXRF ~80 ICP-MS analyses have been performed on field samples from six active mines, three waste piles, and three historic or idle mines, as well as samples from seven cores located near active mines.
• A preliminary assessment of available REE/CM databases associated with the Uinta Basin was completed in June of 2022.
• Some carbonaceous shale units adjacent to coal seams show REE/CM enrichment (REE >200 – 300 ppm). REE-enriched carbonaceous shale units include the roof and floor material of some active mines, suggesting a potential REE/CM resource.
• Igneous dikes that crosscut at least one active mine operations show significant REE/CM enrichment (REE 400 – 1000 ppm), which may be a potential local REE/CM resource. Additionally, igneous dikes are found in one particular coal waste pile, showing up to 795 ppm in samples of igneous waste.
• A handful of coal and carbonaceous shale samples from two historic mines show significant REE/CM enrichment (REE 300 – 900 ppm).
• Total REE content in widely distributed thin (4 inches thick) volcanic ash layers near Uinta Basin oil shale seams has been measured to be 556 and 702 ppm in two samples.
• Resin contents in Uinta Basin (Wasatch Plateau area) coal range from 1-10 percent.
• The resin is generally much more valuable than the coal and can be separated by conventional and new techniques.
• Mining technologies to recover rare earth elements and critical materials from strata above and below coal seams have been assessed.
• Nontraditional mining methods for traditionally unminable coal, such as directional drilling and high wall mining have been assessed.
• Coal conversion technologies that result in small-scale, high value products such as carbon fiber, graphene, and carbon dots have been, and continue to be, assessed.
• Coal conversion technologies that result in large-scale products such as benzene, toluene, and xylene have been, and continue to be, assessed.
• A plan for pyrite use, for REE/CM extraction, was also developed and the report for pyrite use in REE/CM extraction in the Uinta Region was also delivered in June 2022. There is enough pyrite in some parts of the basin to make this viable.
• Rare earth elements and critical materials separation technologies have been and continue to be assessed.
• Outreach efforts have increased our stakeholder engagement from 77 individuals at the end of 2021 to 239 individuals at the end of June in 2022, including the Ute native American tribe, which has land in the Uinta basin.
• Completed an assessment of the workforce demographics and programs in the Uinta Basin.
• The REE/CM Data Assessment has been completed and a milestone report summarizing trends in existing REE and CM data in the Uinta Region (USGS CoalQual data) was delivered in June 2022.

The project team continues to work on all aspects of the CORE-CM project in the Uinta Basin.

Work continues for some sampling and assessment of resources, assessing resource processing methodologies, developing a technology innovation center plan, regularly performing outreach and stakeholder engagement meetings, and working on the other parts of the project.

$2,035,000

$532,777

NETL – Stephen Henry (stephen.henry@netl.doe.gov or 304-285-2083)
University of Utah - Michael Free (michael.free@utah.edu or 801-596-9798)