RARETECH® Technology

RARETECH® is a hydrometallurgical technology designed to recover rare earth elements, facilitating technological progress in an economically viable and environmentally friendly manner. The importance of rare earth elements spans technological innovation, energy sustainability, national security, economic growth, and environmental protection. Their strategic value underscores the global priority of their recovery and production.

RARETECH® is characterized by high efficiency in the recovery of rare earth metals, while avoiding naturally occurring radioactive materials (NORM) in the final products. Two process configurations can be set up: Configuration 1: to obtain a mixed rare earth carbonate product, or Configuration 2: to obtain a rare earth oxide (REO) product.

The process includes the following main steps:

Preparation of raw materials:

To separate the target minerals from the surrounding waste rock and prepare the monazite concentrate for the caustic leaching stage.

Caustic leaching:

Break down the phosphate matrix containing rare earth metal elements to obtain a solid rich in rare earth hydroxides.

Acid leaching stage:

Dissolve the metal hydroxide salts contained in the solid fraction obtained during the caustic leaching stage into a liquid phase, converting them into their chloride salts. This produces a solution highly concentrated in rare earth elements.

Deactivation of radionuclides:

To further reduce the number of impurities, the process includes a step to remove substantially all of the Ra(II) and Pb(II).

Precipitation:

Selective precipitation of a marketable cerium hydroxide.

Purification of rare earth elements:

The rare earth elements are selectively precipitated in the form of a mixed carbonate (Fig. 1). If necessary, this unit is followed by refining and processing steps (solvent extraction technique) to obtain a rare earth oxides (REO) product (Fig. 2).

Optimal management of radionuclides.

The following figure shows a diagram of the technology, highlighting the main stages:

Raretech® Value Proposition

· High recovery efficiency of TREO from a very low percentage of TREO in the ore.

· High efficiency in the removal of radioactive species.

· Operating conditions allow for the removal of impurities (<1% in the generated TREO). The system is free of Fe and S.

· Trisodium phosphate (TSP) and cerium hydroxide as value-added byproducts.

· Highly versatile process that can be applied and adapted to a wide range of raw materials by changing very few operating conditions.

· Leveraging TR’s expertise in hydrometallurgy, Raretech® enables the recovery of additional elements alongside REEs, thereby increasing the overall value of the project.

· Operating under mild conditions (T < 150°C and atmospheric pressure), the process does not use sulfuric acid roasting, resulting in low energy consumption and reduced capital expenditures (CAPEX).

Application

Raretech® products contain essential rare earth elements (REEs) that can make a significant contribution to the energy transition. Due to their unique electrical and magnetic properties, REEs are critical components in the manufacture of permanent magnets, which are used in electric vehicles, wind turbines, smartphones, speakers, computer drives, and defense applications such as lasers and advanced guidance systems.

Building a sustainable future driven by technology.

Together, we create projects that contribute to sustainability and environmental protection. For more information, please contact us.