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

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.

Nanosize platelets of an aluminum material slide and join in a staggered orientation to form larger crystals.

IDREAM researchers uncovered how dimeric complexes control how aluminum hydroxide minerals dissolve.

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.

Trace amounts of iron and chromium can incorporate into gibbsite, affecting how the mineral dissolves.

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

Increasing concentrations of ions slows the rate of particle aggregation in boehmite suspensions.

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.

New IDREAM research explores the effects of electrolyte species on boehmite nanoparticle aggregation in legacy wastes.

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

Hydrogen atoms released and trapped in irradiated gibbsite are destabilized by synthetic-precursor residuals.

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.

Recycling polyolefin materials is challenging. One waste management strategy is plastic upcycling. New work demonstrates a single-step upcycling route coupling cracking and alkylation, recycling carbon and keeping valuable resources active.

When exposed to a sufficiently high dose of ionizing radiation, gibbsite and boehmite are less susceptible to dehydration-induced breakdown.

PNNL researchers review ceramic-metal composite technology for immobilizing radioactive wastes from nuclear reactors, including advanced reactors.