Project Grant 80NSSC21K1224

This $570,710 project grant awarded by the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Engineering program focuses on developing an energy-efficient, economic, and environmentally viable method to separate alloying elements from metal alloys and scrap. The research at Yale University aims to create a thermo-mechanical separation process based on differences in atomic diffusion rates of the alloying elements, which can recover valuable materials and enable a more circular economy. Key activities...

This Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation (NSF) Engineering program (CFDA 47.041) provides $650,000 over 4 years to the University of Illinois for research on developing sustainable strategies for separating and recovering rare-earth elements (REEs) and platinum group metals (PGMs) from waste streams. The project aims to create new electrically-driven separation systems using conductive polymer and carbon nanotube-based electrode materials that can selectively and...

The U.S. Department of Energy's Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) awarded a $1,788,621 Cooperative Agreement to the University of Illinois for the "HIGH EFFICIENCY, SOLID STATE MICROWAVE-POWERED HYDROGEN PLASMAS FOR USE IN DIRECT REDUCTION OF TACONITE ORE AND ORE CONCENTRATES IN A ROTARY KILN FURNACE" project. This 3-year project, with a start date of August 15, 2024, will develop a microwave-powered hydrogen plasma rotary kiln process for directly reducing iron ore...

This $300,000 EAGER Project Grant was awarded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) under the Engineering program (CFDA 47.041) to Florida State University (FSU). The award supports an experimental and multiphysics simulation study to develop a novel, green, and efficient magnetic-assisted separation method for recovering critical metals (such as lithium, nickel, cobalt, and manganese) from end-of-life lithium-ion batteries. The goal is to establish the foundational knowledge and principles...

This $275,999 National Science Foundation Project Grant supports the development of an environmentally friendly rare earth element extraction process from recycled fluorescent light bulb powder. The awardee, IM Technologies LLC, will engineer a prototype reactor system that uses precision ultra-high temperature heating to evaporate and subsequently condense targeted rare earth constituents from light bulb waste. Research tasks include optimizing thermal energy applications to efficiently extract...

This Project Grant award from the Department of Energy's (DOE) Office of Science Financial Assistance Program (CFDA 81.049) provides $206,497.00 to CF Technologies, Inc. to conduct research and development on chromatographic separation of rare earth elements. CF Technologies, a for-profit manufacturer and small disadvantaged business, specializes in CO2 extraction, fractionation, separation and chromatography. Through this one-year grant awarded on July 10, 2023, the company will research and...

Rstream Recycling LLC received a $275,000 Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation under the NSF Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships program (CFDA 47.084) to develop an autonomous waste sorting platform. The platform aims to improve landfill diversion and recycling rates for non-industrial waste streams at high-traffic venues like stadiums, universities, airports, and theme parks. Currently, waste sorting at these facilities is done manually or through expensive robotic...

This EAGER (Early-Concept Grants for Exploratory Research) award from the National Science Foundation (CFDA 47.041 - Engineering) provides $300,000 to New York University (NYU) to develop a novel plasma-electrochemical approach for decarbonizing steel manufacturing. The project aims to eliminate the need for carbon-based reducing agents and fuels in steel production, which currently accounts for 20% of industrial CO2 emissions. Key activities include: 1) Establishing design principles for a...

The Department of Energy Office of Science awarded Radiabeam Systems, LLC $399,110 under the Office of Science Financial Assistance Program (CFDA 81.049) to develop a Cold Plasma Cathode for High Resolution Condensed Matter Electron Spectroscopy. The project aims to deliver a new type of electron source for microscopy and spectroscopy that offers improved resolution over traditional thermionic electron sources. Work will be conducted between June 2022 through March 2023 in Santa Monica,...

The Department of Energy Office of Science awarded a $249,952 Project Grant to Microbeam Technologies Incorporated, a self-certified small disadvantaged business, for their work on "DECHLORINATION OF MIXED-PLASTICS FEEDSTOCK WITH LOW TEMPERATURE PYROLYSIS FOR DOWNSTREAM GASIFICATION AND HYDROGEN PRODUCTION" under the Office of Science Financial Assistance Program (CFDA 81.049). The funding supports Microbeam's research and development activities related to developing techniques for...