Advancing the Economic and Environmental Sustainability of Rare Earth Element Recovery from Phosphogypsum.

ABSTRACT: Transitioning to green energy requires more sustainable rare earth element (REE) production. The current REE supply relies on energy- and chemical-intensive mining, prompting interest in alternative sources like phosphogypsum (PG) waste. However, using conventional solvent extraction to recover REEs in PG is inefficient and environmentally burdensome. This study proposes a treatment train for REE recovery from PG, featuring a bioinspired adsorptive separation, and evaluates its environmental and economic performance using a probabilistic sustainability framework that integrates life cycle assessment (LCA) and techno-economic analysis (TEA). Results show the system achieves an internal rate of return (IRR) above 15% in 87% of simulations, suggesting strong profitability potential. Environme

SUBMITTER: Smerigan A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12461911 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature