Putin scolds Tomtor rare earth deposit’s operator over development delays
Located in the north of the Siberian region of Yakutia, Tomtor is a key project in Russia's plans to boost output of rare earth.
Scientists from the University of Kentucky have produced nearly-pure rare earth concentrates from coal, using an environmentally-conscious and cost-effective process.
After receiving more than $7 million in funding from the US Department of Energy, lead researcher and professor of mining engineering Rick Honaker was able to delve deeply into the creation of the new material.
“The primary objective for our DoE project was to produce a concentrate containing a minimum of 2 per cent rare earth elements,” Honaker said in a university press release. “We have far exceeded this objective.”
He explained that the process recovered more than 80 per cent of the REEs present in the feed sources. The concentrates were comprised of more than 80 per cent total rare earth elements on a dry whole mass basis and more than 98 per cent rare earth oxides. Also, elements such as neodymium and yttrium, commonly used in national defense technologies and the high-tech and renewable energy industries, represented over 45 percent of the total concentrate.
In parallel, scandium was efficiently separated from the other elements through this new recovery process. The rare earth, which is highly used in aerospace and lighting, was also concentrated as a separate product from the circuit.
The groundbreaking process will be part of a one-fourth-tonnes per hour mobile rare earth recovery pilot scale plant being developed and tested by Honaker’s team.
8 Comments
Mike Failla
Now that……is pretty darn cool!
Chris Pritchard
Congrats to Rick and the UK Team!
NewtoWP&php
Great work! What’s the actual stripping ratio? How about a follow-up article with details on process and forecasted costs?
santiago aguilera
increible avance…
Philip S. Baker
What chemicals (perhaps, acids), if any, were used in the extraction and purification process?
stewart jackson
What about some real details and numbers ??
Followup article needed for credibility and perspective, this is a flashy teaser.
Γεώργιος Χατζηγιαννης
what is the content of trace elements in the feed coal?
Mark Harder
Can the metals be recovered from coal ash? If they’re not lost in burning, ashing the coal would concentrate the metals and yield energy (and CO2) at the same time.