Biotechnological solutions for critical mineral recovery from unconventional feedstocks

Journal Article · Fri Jul 25 00:00:00 EDT 2025 · Current Opinion in Biotechnology

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copbio.2025.103336· OSTI ID:3018340

Zurier, Hannah S. ^[1]; Banta, Scott ^[1]; Park, Dan M. ^[2]; Reed, David W. ^[3]; Werner, Alli Z. ^[4]

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1. Columbia Univ., New York, NY (United States)
2. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
3. Idaho National Laboratory (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States)
4. National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

Secure and sustainable metal recovery from unconventional feedstocks is needed to meet the mineral demands of energy, defense, and electronic technologies. Here, we highlight the potential to leverage nature’s ability to extract and differentiate metal ions in biotechnologies that could become the next generation of mining and refining. We describe bulk and trace processes and then discuss the advances and opportunities of two key bioprocesses: microbially mediated solubilization of metal ions from solid matrices (termed ‘bioleaching’) and bio-based separation of solubilized ions via selective adsorption to proteins. Both biotechnologies have advantages such as reduced energy input for leaching low-grade feedstocks and reduced organic solvent demand for separating ions with similar physiochemical properties but require more development for industrial scale recovery from unconventional feedstocks. Innovation in biological science and engineering may bring timely solutions to key challenges toward recovering critical minerals from unconventional feedstocks.

• Research Organization: National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA); USDOE Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) Program; USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA); USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Energy Efficiency Office. Advanced Materials & Manufacturing Technologies Office (AMMTO)
• Grant/Contract Number: AC07-05ID14517; AC36-08GO28308; AC52-07NA27344
• Other Award/Contract Number: FA8650-22-C-7213
• OSTI ID: 3018340
• Report Number(s): LLNL--JRNL-2004310; NREL/JA--2800-96534
• Journal Information: Current Opinion in Biotechnology, Journal Name: Current Opinion in Biotechnology Vol. 95; ISSN 0958-1669
• Publisher: Elsevier
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

09 BIOMASS FUELS
bioleaching
biotechnology
feedstocks
metal recovery