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Recovery and separation of rare earth elements by molten salt electrolysis

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Abstract

With the increasing demand of rare earth metals in functional materials, recovery of rare earth elements (REEs) from secondary resources has become important for the green economy transition. Molten salt electrolysis has the advantages of low water consumption and low hazardous waste during REE recovery. This review systematically summarizes the separation and electroextraction of REEs on various reactive electrodes in different molten salts. It also highlights the relationship between the formed alloy phases and electrodeposition parameters, including applied potential, current, and ion concentration. Moreover, the feasibility of using LiF-NaF-KF electrolyte to recover REEs is evaluated through thermodynamic analysis. Problems related to REE separation/recovery the choice of electrolyte are discussed in detail to realize the low-energy and high current efficiency of practical applications.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 21976047, 21790373, and 51774104), the Ph.D Student Research and Innovation Fund of the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (No. 3072019GIP1011), University and Local Integration Development Project of Yantai, China (No. 2020 XDRHXMPT36), and the Sino-Russian Cooperation Fund of Harbin Engineering University (No. 2021HEUCRF004).

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  1. Yantai Research Institute & Graduate School, Harbin Engineering University, Yantai, 264006, China

    Tai-qi Yin, Yun Xue, Yong-de Yan, Fu-qiu Ma, Mi-lin Zhang & Gui-ling Wang

  2. College of Science, Heihe University, Heihe, 164300, China

    Yong-de Yan & Min Qiu

  3. Zhongkexin Engineering Consulting (Beijing) Co., Ltd, Beijing, 100039, China

    Zhen-chao Ma

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Yin, Tq., Xue, Y., Yan, Yd. et al. Recovery and separation of rare earth elements by molten salt electrolysis. Int J Miner Metall Mater 28, 899–914 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12613-020-2228-4

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