REEaLIGN - Lignin based adsorber gels and bioaccumulation for metal recovery from E-waste
Abstract
are earth elements (REEs) are typically required in small quantities, but they are essential for producing a wide range of technologically advanced products for electronic, optical, and magnetic applications. At present, the market is primarily supplied with virgin rare earths. Currently, there are no noteworthy recycling methods that could meet the constantly increasing demand for these elements. Therefore, REEaLIGN aims at developing a novel recycling process combining bioleaching, biosorption, and bioaccumulation, which enables a sustainable, ecofriendly recovery of REEs from electronic wastes. This 3-step Bioleaching-Biosorption-Bioaccumulation-process consist of the initial bioleaching utilizing metal extracting microorganisms to produce the metal extract including REEs which will be added to a lignin-based hydrogel in a batch process in which metals such as iron, copper, aluminum etc. Will be adsorbed, resulting in a metal extract suitable for bioaccumulation in which REEs will be accumulated in E-Coli for their recovery. Bioleaching, bioaccumulation and biosorption are state-of-the-art methods that not only have the potential to solve environmental challenges such as depletion of natural resources. They are also efficient and economically feasible, and sustainable. The overall combination of lignin-hydrogels as pretreatment to bioaccumulation for Rare Earth Recovery in this project is designed to be a process that neither needs toxic or harmful starting materials nor produce any toxic, harmful or problematic waste at the end of the recycling process.
Project staff
Doris Ribitsch
Priv.Doz. Mag. Dr. Doris Ribitsch
doris.ribitsch@boku.ac.at
Tel: +43 1 47654-97485
Project Leader
01.01.2025 - 31.12.2027
Sebastian Gritsch
Dipl.-Ing. Sebastian Gritsch M.Sc.
sebastian.gritsch@boku.ac.at
Tel: +43 1 47654-97493
Project Staff
01.01.2025 - 31.12.2027
Georg Gübitz
Univ.Prof. Dipl.-Ing.Dr.techn. Georg Gübitz
guebitz@boku.ac.at
Tel: +43 1 47654-97001, 97402
Project Staff
01.01.2025 - 31.12.2027
BOKU partners
External partners
AgroBiogel GmbH
partner
University of Applied Sciences Krems, Institute of Biotechnology
partner