The U.S. government has been making considerable efforts to shore up the domestic supply chain for critical minerals and other materials used in industries from automobiles and clean energy to defense, aerospace and consumer electronics.
Earlier this year, it reached critical minerals agreements with the European Union, Japan and Mexico, and President Donald Trump signed an executive order to create a $12 billion critical mineral stockpile meant to reduce U.S. dependence on other countries for these minerals and materials.
In addition, the U.S. Department of Energy has been working to bolster the domestic critical minerals supply chain through its Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation. Here are some of its latest efforts.
University of Nevada, Georgia Tech Research Corp.
The DOE on June 3 announced $15 million for two projects that will establish regional consortia to accelerate the development of new critical minerals and materials supply chains from unconventional and secondary feedstocks.
In the first project, researchers at the University of Nevada, Reno, will investigate critical minerals resources within sedimentary formations and active mine waste in the Pacific Coast and Basin and Range regions, the DOE said. The goal is to develop a comprehensive critical minerals database comprising existing information and new data gathered through field work.
The second project will involve researchers at Georgia Tech Research Corp. examining valuable minerals within the Atlantic seaboard plain. Categories of particular interest include sedimentary minerals such as kaolin, bauxite, heavy minerals and phosphate, as well as residues from mining and coal combustion.
Researchers will also analyze samples from former industrial sites, otherwise known as brownfields, to identify their composition, mineral types, critical mineral forms and rare earth element characteristics. The data collected will be used in statistical analyses and machine learning to predict where these minerals can be found and develop efficient extraction methods.
These projects will join six previous selectees and build on the work of the DOE’s Carbon Ore, Rare Earth, and Critical Minerals Initiative, the agency said.
“Building domestic supply chains for critical minerals and materials means realizing the value of unconventional feedstocks,” said Assistant Secretary of Energy Audrey Robertson said in a statement. “Domestically abundant sources, such as coal, wastewater from oil and gas development, and acid mine drainage, can reinforce supply chains for American manufacturing and the production of essential technologies.”
Colorado School of Mines, Phoenix Tailings
On June 2, the DOE announced $134 million for two projects meant to demonstrate the commercial viability of recovering and refining rare earth elements like praseodymium, neodymium, terbium and dysprosium from unconventional feedstocks such as mine tailings, electronic waste and other waste materials.
A project at the Colorado School of Mines will design, construct, commission and operate a rare earth element demonstration facility at an alumina refinery Gramercy, Louisiana, according to a news release. The facility will process a critical mineral-rich bauxite waste product called “red mud.”
By separating rare earth oxides and refining them into rare earth metals, the facility aims to demonstrate the commercial feasibility of an integrated domestic rare earth element extraction, separation and refining process.
The other project, led by Phoenix Tailings, will design, construct, commission and operate a demonstration-scale facility to produce high-purity rare earth metals from domestic industrial waste-derived feedstocks, according to the release. The company is partnering with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Minnesota on the project.
Argonne National Laboratory
The DOE’s Argonne National Laboratory on June 10 announced the National Science-at-Scale Collaborative, which is meant to speed up the transition of critical materials and chemical manufacturing technologies from research to commercial production.
The “National Science-at-Scale Collaborative” brings together industry, government and the national laboratories to address complex challenges in critical materials and chemical manufacturing in the U.S., according to a news release.
Under the initiative, researchers plan to use advanced computer modeling, artificial intelligence, rapid synthesis tools and pilot-scale manufacturing systems at Argonne’s Materials Engineering Research Facility to help companies test and scale new production processes. Argonne will partner with the DOE’s Office of Critical Materials and Energy Innovation on the effort.
“American manufacturing has an opportunity to lead the next generation of innovation in critical materials and chemical processing,” said Argonne Director Paul Kearns said in a statement. “The National Science-at-Scale Collaborative will help connect discovery, engineering and deployment in ways that strengthen U.S. competitiveness and advance our economic security.”
Additional projects
Last month, the DOE announced $45.7 million for 19 projects that aim to address gaps in the domestic critical minerals and materials supply chain. The funding supports the development of pilot-scale facilities for processing magnesium and rare earth elements, the agency said.
Funding recipients under this initiative include USA Rare Earth, Big Blue Technologies, Princeton University, Columbia University, Ohio University and others.
