Protein-binding process supports selective rare-earth element separation

Isolating and purifying rare-earth elements (REEs) is extremely challenging and energy-intensive due to the difficulty in separating chemically similar REE ions. Traditional separation methods require solvent extraction or chelating agents and produce large volumes of hazardous waste, all with little guaranteed selectivity for desired REE species. A team of researchers from Battelle has demonstrated a “highly selective recognition system” for REEs, taking advantage of the natural ion-binding characteristics of certain protein families.

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