In today's critical stage of rapid development of science and technology and energy transformation, the importance of rare earths as the "vitamin" of modern industry is self-evident. From smartphones and computers to wind turbines and new energy vehicles, rare earths are widely used in all kinds of modern equipment and support the development of various green energy. However, the recycling rate of rare earth is only 1% due to various factors.
Marie Perrin, a chemist at ETH Zurich, and her team have successfully developed a method for extracting rare earth "europium" from energy-saving lamps using a Vigor glove box, making significant progress in obtaining the rare earth element “europium”, bringing new hope to the field of rare earth recycling. This innovative method is as ingenious as the precise separation of dough and salt when baking a pizza.
What are Rare Earths?
Rare earth is the general term of lanthanide metal elements in the periodic table, rare earth elements have excellent physical properties such as light and electromagnetism, and can form new materials with different properties and a wide variety of other materials. As a result, rare earths are used in a variety of fields.
Excellent inert atmosphere
Behind this groundbreaking research, the Vigor glove box plays a vital role. Europium is the most chemically active element in the lanthanide series, which immediately loses its metallic luster in the air at room temperature, and is quickly oxidized into powder, which reacts quickly with oxygen and water, can be burned to form oxides, and reacts with water to release hydrogen, which is easily soluble in acid.
The Vigor glove box provides the perfect research space - a highly pure, oxygen-free and anhydrous inert gas environment, which effectively avoids unnecessary reactions between europium and the external environment, and ensures the accuracy and stability of experimental results.
In addition, the storage of radioactive element samples in the glove box can effectively avoid leakage and contamination, and can effectively protect researchers and test sites from radiation damage.
The research results of Mary Perran's team have been published in the professional journal Nature Communications and a patent has been filed. In order to further promote the application of this technology, the start-up REEcover has been established. The company plans to expand the technology to recover rare earths from energy-saving light bulbs first, and then gradually expand to the recycling of other rare earth elements.
With the increasing emphasis on sustainable development around the world, the development of rare earth recycling technology has broad prospects. The Vigor glove box will continue to provide a solid guarantee for scientific research and production, and contribute more to the sustainable use of the earth's resources.
Nature Communications：
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-024-48733-z
Original link：
https://www.20min.ch/story/schweizer-innovation-eth-chemikerin-entdeckt-verfahren-fuer-recycling-seltener-erden-103284902
