Phoenix tailings, INC. New award DE-FOA-0003510 - realize energy-rich compound opportunities valorizing extraction from refuse waters (recover) project title: ''select: selective extraction via…

The Department of Energy Advanced Research Projects Agency awarded a $2 million Cooperative Agreement to Phoenix Tailings Inc. on February 18, 2026, under the Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy program (CFDA 81.135) for the RECOVER (Realize Energy-Rich Compound Opportunities Valorizing Extraction from Refuse Waters) initiative.

Phoenix Tailings is developing a novel fractional distillation process utilizing volatile ligands to selectively recover rare earth elements and other critical minerals from domestic wastewater streams. The project, titled "SELECT: Selective Extraction via Ligand-Enhanced Complexation and Thermal Separation," addresses U.S. supply chain vulnerabilities in critical materials by reducing reliance on foreign suppliers and bolstering domestic mineral independence.

The award runs through February 17, 2028, with performance at Phoenix Tailings' facility in Woburn, Massachusetts. The source notes a principal investigator change via Amendment 0001 but does not detail the sub-recipient or pass-through structure. ARPA-E advances high-potential, high-impact energy technologies too early for private-sector investment.

Phoenix tailings, INC. New award DE-FOA-0003510 - realize energy-rich compound opportunities valorizing extraction from refuse waters (recover) project title: ''select: selective extraction via ligand-enhanced complexation and thermal separation'' the united states faces significant vulnerabilities in its critical material supply chains, particularly for rare earth elements and other critical minerals dominated by adversarial nations, posing a threat to energy, defense, and industrial sectors. A proposed solution involves developing a novel fractional distillation process utilizing volatile ligands to selectively recover these vital materials from underutilized domestic wastewater streams, thereby reducing reliance on foreign sources and bolstering U.S. Mineral independence