Replacing commercial acid with acidic waste enables researchers to improve nickel extraction efficiency, lower projected costs, and improve process economics.

PNNL addresses vulnerabilities interconnected to operational technologies by improving cybersecurity with targeted tools and trainings.

Localized gradients in magnetic fields have long-range effects on the concentration of rare earth ions in solution, facilitating field-driven extraction of critical minerals.

Studying a series of rare earth element compounds revealed differences in their magnetic behavior that will be leveraged for separations.

A new patent-pending technology can quickly identify refrigerant leakage in heating, cooling, and refrigeration systems.

Nanoscale domains of magnetically susceptible critical materials encounter enhanced magnetic interactions under external magnetic fields, providing a promising new avenue for separations.

The size of graphene oxide sheets affects the ability of assembled membranes and adsorbents to separate rare earth elements.

In the search for rare physics events, extremely pure materials are essential. A partnership between PNNL and Ultramet has led to tungsten with low contamination from other elements.

A PNNL team has developed an energy- and chemical-efficient method of separating valuable critical minerals from dissolved solutions of rare earth element magnets.

The ARPA-E Energy Innovation Summit brings together researchers, industry leaders, entrepreneurs, and investors to showcase the latest technologies shaping tomorrow’s energy landscape. This year, eight projects led by PNNL were featured.

Surface manganese mining from nodules in South Dakota is now possible with a new scalable selective precipitation process.

Cobalt substitution for magnesium in a model mafic mineral dramatically slows reaction with carbon dioxide to form a cobalt-doped carbonate.

Precipitation with sodium hydroxide in a flow-gel device enables the rapid extraction of magnesium from seawater in a new scalable process.

The atomic-level distribution of nickel and cobalt in forsterite depends on the concentration of the different elements.

The surface oxygen functionality of graphene oxide may be tuned using ultraviolet light, affecting how differently charged ions move through the material.

Practical decontamination of industrial wastewater depends on energy-efficient separations. This study explored using ionic liquids as part of the process, enabling efficient electrochemical separation from aqueous solutions.

Tennessee State University received Department of Energy funding to establish an academy focused on preparing students and professionals to work in an emerging field: clean energy systems. PNNL is helping with that effort and others.

PNNL helps deliver efficiency-related rules and requirements that steadily improve performance of America’s buildings, saving energy and costs and reducing carbon emissions.

A simple gel-based system separates metals ions from a model solution of dissolved battery electrodes without the need for specialty chemicals, membranes, or toxic solvents.

Mandy Mahoney, director of the DOE Building Technologies Office, visited PNNL in late November. One key agenda item involved meeting with staff for a discussion of effective equity and justice integration in buildings-related research.