Idiomarina aminovorans sp. nov., a halophilic bacterium isolated from the Llamara salt pan in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile.

The Atacama Desert, one of the most extreme environments on our planet, harbors a plethora of unique microbial communities adapted to the harsh conditions of the habitat. In this study, strain ATCH4, a novel Gram-stain-negative, curved rod-shaped bacterium, was isolated from the Llamara salt pan, located in the Atacama Desert in the north of Chile. ATCH4 was capable of growth within a range of 3-12% (w/v) NaCl, 4-40 °C, and pH 6-9.

Evaluation of a Bio-Based Solvent Pretreatment for Sustainable Froth Flotation of Black Mass from Spent Lithium-Ion Batteries.

Froth flotation effectively separates anode graphite from cathode active materials (CAMs) of spent lithium-ion batteries when CAM particles are free of organic binders, such as polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF). This study investigated a bio-based solvent, dihydrolevoglucosenone (Cyrene ), as a pretreatment to remove the PVDF binder from both single chemistry black mass (BM) and industrially produced mixed chemistry black mass (IBM). The subsequent flotation combined with high-intensity attritioning improved CAMs and graphite separation efficiency compared to that of mechanical pretreatment alone, increasing from 0.

Determining decoating efficiency for mechanically stressed catalyst coated membranes of proton exchange membrane water electrolysers.

The recovery of critical raw materials from water electrolysers, which are used to produce green hydrogen, is essential to keep the raw materials with limited availability in the material cycle and to facilitate the expansion of production of this technology, which is supposed to be essential for the decarbonisation of our industrial society. Proton exchange membrane water electrolysers (PEMWE) use precious metals such as Ir and Pt as catalysts, which require a high recycling rate due to their natural scarcity. In order to investigate at an early-stage mechanical recycling technologies, such as shredding for liberation and milling for decoating of these complex materials, it becomes necessary to develop small-scale experimental methods.

Effects of defined organic layers on the fluorescence lifetime of plastic materials.

Plastics have become an integral part of modern life, and linked to that fact, the demand for and global production of plastics are still increasing. However, the environmental pollution caused by plastics has reached unprecedented levels. The accumulation of small plastic fragments-microplastics and nanoplastics-potentially threatens organisms, ecosystems, and human health.

Recovery of germanium from optical fiber industry wastewater using desferroxamine B.

Germanium (Ge) is a critical element whose long-term supply to industry is not assured. Thus, recovery of Ge from secondary sources is important. Siderophores-assisted technology could be a solution for recovery of Ge from secondary sources.

Peptide-based recycling of critical raw materials from electronic waste : The transition towards a circular economy requires novel and environmentally-friendly solutions to increase the recycling rate from discarded electronic devices.

Biology-based tools, notably metal-binding peptides, could help to considerably increase the recycling rate of metals in electronic waste as required by EU law and for a more sustainable economy. [Image: see text]

Application of phage surface display for the identification of Eu-binding peptides.

Europium as one of the rare earth elements (REE) has outstanding properties in terms of its application for high-tech and renewable energy products. The high supply risk of REE, coupled with their low recovery rates from secondary sources, necessitates innovative recycling approaches. We introduce a phage display-based peptide biosorbent recycling technology that offers a cost-effective and environmentally friendly solution for recovering metal ions, supporting circular economy goals.

Fundamentals of bio-based technologies for selective metal recovery from bio-leachates and liquid waste streams.

The number of metal-containing waste streams resulting from electronic end-of life products, metallurgical by-products, and mine tailings to name but a few, is increasing worldwide. In recent decades, the potential to exploit these waste streams as valuable secondary resources to meet the high demand of critical and economically important raw materials has become more prominent. In this review, fundamental principles of bio-based metal recovery technologies are discussed focusing on microbial metabolism-dependent and metabolism-independent mechanisms as sustainable alternatives to conventional chemical metal recovery methods.

A workflow to assess the recoverability of secondary raw materials via physical separation.

Printed circuit boards represent an extraordinarily challenging fraction for the recycling of waste electric and electronic equipment. Due to the closely interlinked structure of the composing materials, the selective recycling of copper and closely associated precious metals from this composite material is compromised by losses during mechanical pre-processing. This problem could partially be overcome by a better understanding of the influence of particle size and shape on the recovery of finely comminuted and well-liberated metal particles during mechanical separation.

Desferrioxamine B (DFOB) assisted nanofiltration system for the recycling of gallium from low concentrated wastewater.

Gallium is classified as a technology metal as it is important for technological innovations. It is also referred to as a strategic metal, which emphasizes its economic relevance. In addition, gallium is a critical raw material that is strategically important but only available in limited quantities.

Byproduct-to-Host Ratios for Assessing the Accessibility of Mineral Resources.

Mineral resources are essential for reaching net-zero ambitions by 2050. There is a rising diversity of metals in electricity generation and storage technologies, as well as for mobility technologies. However, little is known about the future supply of minor elements historically mined in low volumes such as indium, tellurium, germanium, or tantalum.

A new type of submarine chimneys built of halite.

In contrast to the subaquatic sulphide and carbonate chimneys, which are known from Mid Ocean Ridges and abyssal submarine volcanoes, chimneys built of salts have not been described yet. Here we present such halite chimneys as a new form of cold-water smokers in hypersaline environments. The here described structures rise up from the bottom of the Dead Sea and result from the submarine discharge of saturated halite-dissolution brines into the salt lake, which is at halite saturation and holds remarkable chloride excess.

Gallium recovery from red mud: Integration of solvent extraction and siderophore assisted technologies.

Gallium (Ga) recovery from the red mud, though important has never been successful due to several technical and economic reasons such as contaminant interference and the high cost of membranes due to their faster saturation resulting in the clogging of membranes with contaminants. This study demonstrated the recovery of Ga by a combination of HCl-based leaching, Fe/Al/Ti separation, and recovery of Ga using Cyphos IL 104-based solvent extraction and complexation of Ga with desferrioxamine B as a proof-of-principle of the GaLIophore technology. The main leaching parameters such as concentrations of acids, time and temperature of the reaction, and solid-to-liquid ratio have been systematically investigated.

Efficient density functional theory directed identification of siderophores with increased selectivity towards indium and germanium.

Siderophores are promising ligands for application in novel recycling and bioremediation technologies, as they can selectively complex a variety of metals. However, with over 250 known siderophores, the selection of suiting complexants in the wet lab is impractical. Thus, this study established a density functional theory (DFT) based approach to efficiently identify siderophores with increased selectivity towards target metals on the example of germanium and indium.

Establishing grassland mixtures on mine wastes - a two-year mesocosm study.

Plant growth on mine wastes is restricted by the lack of water, nutrients, phytotoxic responses and the absence of a seedbank. In a mesocosm study, we addressed the establishment of vegetation on metalliferous mine wastes from two seed mixtures. Besides the composition of the vegetation and the increase in plant cover and biomass over time, we studied concentrations of heavy metals in the shoot and analyzed the quantity of throughflow, its pH and EC to follow pollutant discharge.

Carbon-based single-atom catalysts derived from biomass: Fabrication and application.

Single-atom catalysts (SACs) with active metals dispersed atomically have shown great potential in heterogeneous catalysis due to the high atomic utilization and superior selectivity/stability. Synthesis of SACs using carbon-neutral biomass and its components as the feedstocks provides a promising strategy to realize the sustainable and cost-effective SACs preparation as well as the valorization of underused biomass resources. Herein, we begin by describing the general background and status quo of carbon-based SACs derived from biomass.

Organic/metallic component analysis of lignocellulosic biomass: A thermochemical-perspective-based study on rice and bamboo waste.

Thermochemical treatment is significantly impacted by the physiochemical properties of lignocellulosic biomass. Traditional characterization methods lack granularity, requiring advanced analytical techniques for comprehensive biomass characterization. This study analyzed elemental composition and their distribution in untreated rice husk, rice straw, and bamboo chips at micron and sub-micron scales.

Role of Oxidants in Metal Extraction from Sulfide Minerals in a Deep Eutectic Solvent.

Metallurgical applications of deep eutectic solvents (DESs), known as ionometallurgy, have received significant research attention in recent years. While many studies claim that DESs are generally green and enhance process efficiency, others believe that industrial applications of ionometallurgy are generally not viable. Here, we report on leaching experiments of a sulfide flotation concentrate using ethaline, a chloride-based DES, in the presence of common oxidants.

Selective leaching of indium from spent LCD screens by siderophore desferrioxamine E.

Given the criticality of indium (In) in high-tech applications, spent LCD screens can represent a viable secondary In resource. In this work, an innovative and alternative technology to selectively leach In from spent LCD screens using a microbial chelating agent, desferrioxamine E (DFOE), was developed. Indium was concentrated from spent LCD screens by implementing an adapted pre-treatment procedure, allowing the isolation of an indium-rich glassy fraction.

Lithium aluminate flotation by pH- and light-switchable collectors based on the natural product punicine.

Derivatives of the natural product punicine [1-(2',5'-dihydroxyphenyl)pyridinium chloride] were developed as switchable collectors for the flotation of lithium-containing engineered artifical minerals (EnAMs). These EnAMs are formed by pyrometallurgical processing of end-of-life lithium-ion batteries. Depending on the pH value and the lighting conditions, punicines exist in water as cations, two different electrostatically neutral mesomeric betaines, anionic tripoles, radical cations or radical anions.

Multi-sensor characterization for an improved identification of polymers in WEEE recycling.

Polymers represent around 25% of total waste from electronic and electric equipment. Any successful recycling process must ensure that polymer-specific functionalities are preserved, to avoid downcycling. This requires a precise characterization of particle compounds moving at high speeds on conveyor belts in processing plants.

Graphene oxide and bacteria interactions: what is known and what should we expect?

Graphene oxide (GO) and graphene-based materials (GBMs) have gained over the last two decades considerable attention due to their intrinsic physicochemical properties and their applications. Besides, a lot of concern regarding the potential toxicity of GBMs has emerged. One of the aspects of concern is the interactions between GBMs and different environmental compartments, especially indigenous microbial and, in particular, bacterial communities.