ABSTRACT

Rare earth elements (REEs) are utilized as critical components in a broad range of essential products and clean energy technologies including smart phones, medical imaging equipment (MRI), solar cells, electrical vehicles, wind-turbines, and light emitting diodes (LEDs). In the United States, over 90% of the REEs used in commercial products and industrial applications are produced overseas through the mining, extraction, and processing of virgin ores. However, REE mining has a heavy environmental footprint as it requires significant amounts of energy and water and generates substantial amounts of wastes. The overarching goal of this project is to explore the development of an integrated biomining process for the sustainable extraction, separation, and concentration of REEs from domestic ores, mineral deposits, and waste materials. To advance this goal, the Principal Investigators propose to design and build a hybrid bacterial and engineered bacteriophage system that could 1) extract REEs from processed ores, minerals, solid wastes, and 2) separate the REEs from the resulting leaching solutions to produce purified REE concentrates for industrial usage. The successful completion of this research will benefit society through the generation of new fundamental knowledge to advance the development of next generation biomining processes for the sustainable extraction and purification of REEs. Additional benefits to society will be achieved through education and training including the mentoring of two graduate students and a postdoctoral researcher at the University of California, Berkeley and two graduate students at the University of Arizona.

The United States is vulnerable to disruptions in its supply of rare earth elements (REEs) which have become the critical components of a broad range of essential industrial products and clean energy technologies. Thus, there is an urgent need to reduce the Nation?s reliance on imported REEs by sustainably mining and processing domestic deposits of REEs. The goal of this research is to develop a novel bio-hydrometallurgical process consisting of an integrated bacterial and engineered bacteriophage (Phage) hybrid system that could sustainably bioleach REEs from their ores and separate/concentrate the REEs from the leaching solutions. To recover REEs in a cost-effective and sustainable manner, a synthetic biology approach will be integrated with engineered methylotrophic bacteria to selectively bioaccumulate REEs as phosphates and to engineer E. coli to produce organic acids for bioleaching. The specific objectives of the research are to: (1) Discover and design the proteins that are responsible for the binding and transportation of REEs; (2) Engineer phage for REE binding for the selective separation of REEs; (3) Integrate the engineered bacterial strains with phage to build a hybrid REE extraction system; and (4) Investigate the social, economic, policy, and environmental implications of the proposed new REE biomining process. The successful completion of this research has the potential for transformative impact on biomining through the development of cost-effective and environmentally acceptable processes to extract, separate, and concentrate REEs from processed ores and waste materials. To implement the educational and training goals of this project, the Principal Investigators propose to leverage existing programs and resources at their respective institutions to develop and implement two programs including a Biology/Bioengineering/Biomining Research for Undergraduate Student (REU) program and Help (BIO-RUSH), an education/outreach STEM program designed to recruit and mentor K-12 students and undergraduate/graduate students.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

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