Boston Electrometallurgical Corporation — Department of Energy SBIR Phase II: 02d

Description

Even with the current expansion of rare earth mining in the US, Canada, and Australia, there is a gas in the supply chain where the ores and concentrates from these mines are converted into metals and alloys. A novel technology for extraction of metals that is cleaner, greener, and cheaper than incumbent technologies has been developed. Neodymium is a essential element for the powerful permanent magnets used wind turbines, electric vehicles, and other applications. However, neodymium is classified by the Department of Energy as critical due to insufficient and insecure supply, including a virtual monopoly by a few companies in China. Furthermore, incumbent technologies for producing metal from rare earth ores are inefficient, environmentally unfriendly, and unsustainable. The proposed solution is molten oxide electrolysis (MOE), which will produce neodymium metal and alloys from concentrates efficiently and cleanly. MOE involves fewer unit operations than incumbent process. MOE avoids producing polyfluorinated carbons (PFCs), dioxins, furans, and hydrofluoric acid and this also avoids the necessity of cleaning up these emissions. In addition to the advantages in safety and environmental protection, eliminating these steps saves energy, capital, and operating expense. The Phase I project addressed several critical technical risks: design of the supporting electrolyte, containment of the product, and thermal balance in the reactor. A proprietary electrolyte that will serve as a good starting point for optimization has been identifies through the use of computational thermodynamics and thermodynamic databases. A concept for containment of the product while minimizing contamination has been developed. Models for the thermal optimization of the reactor have been extended and applied to the proposed electrolyte system. An experimental run in pilot-scale reactor conducted, using a surrogate system that captures many of the key chemical and physical characteristics of the electrolyte to be used to produce neodymium in Phase II. In Phase II, the focus is applying the results of the Phase I to the successful production of neodymium. A pilot-scale cell will be modified as determined in the Phase I and operate with the electrolyte identified in Phase I to produce neodymium. The energy consumption, current efficiency, and production rate of neodymium will be measured as they were in the Phase I experiments with a surrogate system. The Phase II study will result in neodymium produced by MOE, details of the chemical profile of that product, and its cost and energy consumption, all measured experimentally. The commercial applications and other benefits include safe, secure access to the materials needed for expanding the modern economy and increasing the deployment of the renewable energy, at lower cost in both economic and environmental terms. Diversity in the supply base may also help to defuse recent geopolitical tension over this critical material.