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Rare Erath Elements: Their Geological Sources and the Potential of Organosulfonic Acids For Rare Earth Elements Leaching from Coal Ash and Process Optimization
Version 1
: Received: 22 November 2023 / Approved: 23 November 2023 / Online: 23 November 2023 (04:50:51 CET)
How to cite:
Miadonye, A.; Amadu, M. Rare Erath Elements: Their Geological Sources and the Potential of Organosulfonic Acids For Rare Earth Elements Leaching from Coal Ash and Process Optimization. Preprints2023, 2023111470. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202311.1470.v1
Miadonye, A.; Amadu, M. Rare Erath Elements: Their Geological Sources and the Potential of Organosulfonic Acids For Rare Earth Elements Leaching from Coal Ash and Process Optimization. Preprints 2023, 2023111470. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202311.1470.v1
Miadonye, A.; Amadu, M. Rare Erath Elements: Their Geological Sources and the Potential of Organosulfonic Acids For Rare Earth Elements Leaching from Coal Ash and Process Optimization. Preprints2023, 2023111470. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202311.1470.v1
APA Style
Miadonye, A., & Amadu, M. (2023). Rare Erath Elements: Their Geological Sources and the Potential of Organosulfonic Acids For Rare Earth Elements Leaching from Coal Ash and Process Optimization. Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202311.1470.v1
Chicago/Turabian Style
Miadonye, A. and Mumuni Amadu. 2023 "Rare Erath Elements: Their Geological Sources and the Potential of Organosulfonic Acids For Rare Earth Elements Leaching from Coal Ash and Process Optimization" Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202311.1470.v1
Abstract
The orbital elactronic structure of Rare Earth Elements (REEs) contains many unpaired electrons which render them capable of storing large amount of magnetic energy in addition to being critical for hitech applications. Geological deposits are their conventional sources, and the current supply chain relies on production from these deposits. However, given their critical roles in the anticipated global energy transition, there is the need to explore other viable sources to supplement current and future supplies chains.
REEs occur in coal as accessory minerals and their concentration in coal ash to levels that rival those of geological deposits has been estab;ished by sophisticated analytical chemical methods. Conmventional hydrometallurgical processes rely on acid leaching, using tioxic mineral acids. Meanwhile, organosulfonic acids have pKa values that rival those of conventional minerals acid and can, therefore, be used in hydrometallurgy but their uses in this regard are not well documented in the literature. In this extensive review, we have covered geological sources of REEs exaustively in addition to showing the potential of organosulfonic acids as environmentally benign lixiviants for REEs extraction from coal ash. We have also shown how process optimization can be achieved using advance technologies while using organisulfonic acids. Moreover, we have shown current and future global market trends regarding the production of select organosulfonic acids, and the anticipated global increase in their production motivates the use of organosulfonic acids as viable lixiviants for REEs extraction from caol ash deposits.
Keywords
Coal ash; mineral acids; organosulfonic acids; lixiviants; hydrometallurgy; rare earth elements
Subject
Chemistry and Materials Science, Other
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
