Protein Could Unlock New Sources of Rare Earth Elements
A protein that binds rare-earth elements could be used to extract and separate these valuable metals from low-grade sources, such as coal ash or electronic waste (ACS Cent. Sci. 2021, DOI: 10.1021/acscentsci.1c00724).
The rare-earth elements (REEs) include the 15 lanthanides, along with scandium and yttrium, and many are in high demand...