Rare earth elements, a group of chemical elements, and other critical minerals are generally costly and difficult to procure and dependent on complex supply chains. Yet some of these elements such as lithium are absolutely essential for technology from wind turbines to cell phones.
Northeastern University researchers are proposing a new source for some of these critical materials: wastewater. The finding is especially critical as the world transitions to clean energy, the researchers said.
“Clean energy technologies depend on critical materials, and this paper shows that we can offset some of the demands for these materials through wastewater,” said Qudus Rafiu, a doctoral student at Northeastern who conducted the research with Damilola Daramola, assistant professor of chemical engineering and chemistry and chemical biology.
The research was published online last week in Joule, a scientific journal focused on addressing the need for more sustainable energy
Read more at Northeastern Global News
Photo by Matthew Modoono/Northeastern University
