Mineral Recovery
Overview
Critical minerals are essential for modern life, supporting technologies used in clean energy, advanced manufacturing, agriculture, electronics, and national infrastructure. As global demand continues to grow, developing sustainable methods to recover these valuable resources has become increasingly important.
At the Sustainable Waste-to-Bioproducts Engineering Center (SWBEC), researchers develop innovative biological and engineering technologies that recover critical minerals and other valuable resources from municipal and industrial sources, including wastewater, industrial residuals, and mineral-rich brines.
Rather than relying solely on traditional mining, SWBEC investigates sustainable resource recovery systems that transform underutilized materials into valuable products while reducing waste, protecting water quality, and strengthening domestic resource recovery. Research includes developing bio-based technologies that recover critical minerals from brine water and other unconventional sources, supporting more sustainable pathways for resource recovery.
Through interdisciplinary research, pilot-scale technology development, and collaboration with industry and government partners, SWBEC is helping build more resilient and sustainable supply chains while advancing the circular bioeconomy.
Caption: Mineral-rich brines provide an important resource for developing sustainable technologies that recover critical minerals from unconventional sources.
Why Critical Minerals Matter
Critical minerals are the building blocks of many technologies that support modern society. They are used in renewable energy systems, advanced manufacturing, electronics, transportation, agriculture, and countless industrial applications.
As demand continues to increase, recovering these valuable materials from existing resources offers an opportunity to reduce dependence on traditional extraction methods while improving resource efficiency and environmental sustainability.
SWBEC develops innovative technologies that recover valuable minerals from unconventional sources, helping transform materials that were once considered waste into renewable resources that support future industries.
Recovering Critical Minerals from Municipal and Industrial Sources
Municipal wastewater, industrial processes, and mineral-rich brines often contain valuable minerals that can be recovered before they are lost to the environment.
SWBEC develops biological and engineering approaches that capture these materials and convert them into valuable products for future use. By integrating biological treatment systems with advanced recovery technologies, researchers improve resource efficiency while reducing environmental impacts associated with conventional extraction and disposal.
These technologies create opportunities to recover valuable materials from resources that already exist, supporting both environmental stewardship and long-term resource security.
Caption: SWBEC develops biological and engineering technologies to recover critical minerals from municipal and industrial sources, including mineral-rich brines.
Biological Recovery Using Algae
One of SWBEC's unique research approaches uses algae and biological systems to recover valuable minerals from water and other resource streams.
As algae grow, they naturally absorb nutrients and dissolved minerals from their surrounding environment. These biological processes allow minerals to become concentrated within the biomass, creating opportunities for resource recovery after the algae are harvested and processed.
By combining algae cultivation with wastewater treatment and resource recovery, SWBEC develops integrated systems capable of improving water quality while simultaneously producing valuable biological materials and recovering important minerals.
This innovative approach demonstrates how biological systems can contribute to sustainable mineral recovery while reducing waste and supporting renewable manufacturing.
Caption: Algae naturally absorb dissolved minerals from brine water and other resource streams, creating opportunities for sustainable biological mineral recovery.
Recovering Minerals from Brines
Mineral-rich brines generated through industrial activities and water treatment processes contain valuable resources that are often difficult to recover using conventional methods.
SWBEC investigates biological approaches that concentrate and recover minerals from these complex water sources while minimizing environmental impacts and improving overall resource efficiency.
Unlike traditional recovery methods that can require significant energy or water consumption, biological systems offer opportunities to recover valuable minerals through more sustainable processes while supporting responsible water management.
Research in this area contributes to the development of innovative technologies capable of recovering valuable resources from unconventional sources.
Phosphorus Recovery for Sustainable Agriculture
Phosphorus is an essential nutrient for crop production and one of the world's most important agricultural resources. Recovering phosphorus from wastewater helps conserve finite natural resources while improving water quality and reducing nutrient pollution.
SWBEC develops technologies that recover phosphorus before it leaves wastewater treatment systems, converting it into valuable agricultural products such as struvite, a slow-release mineral fertilizer containing both phosphorus and nitrogen.
This work demonstrates how resource recovery can simultaneously support agriculture, protect aquatic ecosystems, and create renewable fertilizer products that contribute to long-term sustainability.
Caption: Recovered phosphorus can be converted into struvite, a slow-release fertilizer that supports sustainable agriculture and healthy crop production.
From Research to Real-World Applications
SWBEC collaborates with municipalities, industry partners, government agencies, national laboratories, and academic researchers to develop technologies that address real-world resource recovery challenges.
Research progresses from laboratory investigations to pilot-scale demonstrations where scientists evaluate technical performance, environmental benefits, and economic feasibility under practical operating conditions.
Much of this work is conducted at the Algae Processing and Products (APP) Facility, where pilot-scale systems allow researchers to develop and validate technologies before they move toward larger-scale implementation.
Undergraduate and graduate students participate throughout the research process by designing experiments, operating pilot-scale systems, analyzing recovered materials, and helping develop innovative technologies that contribute to future resource recovery industries.
Caption: Students conduct hands-on research at the Algae Processing and Products (APP) Facility, where pilot-scale technologies are developed and evaluated for real-world resource recovery applications.
Environmental and Economic Benefits
Recovering minerals from existing resources creates significant environmental, economic, and technological benefits.
SWBEC's research helps:
- Recover critical minerals from municipal and industrial sources
- Improve water quality through resource recovery
- Reduce dependence on traditional mineral extraction
- Support sustainable agriculture through phosphorus recovery
- Increase resource efficiency
- Reduce waste generation
- Strengthen domestic supply chains
- Support advanced manufacturing and clean energy technologies
- Advance technology transfer and commercialization
By transforming underutilized resources into valuable products, SWBEC demonstrates how sustainable engineering can create solutions that benefit both society and the environment.
Infographic illustrating the environmental, economic, and technological benefits of biological mineral recovery from municipal and industrial sources.
The infographic could highlight:
- Resource Recovery
- Water Quality Improvement
- Sustainable Agriculture
- Advanced Manufacturing
- Clean Energy Technologies
- Technology Transfer
- Circular Bioeconomy
Supporting a Circular Bioeconomy
Mineral Recovery research is part of SWBEC's broader mission to transform underutilized resources into valuable bioproducts through engineering innovation and interdisciplinary collaboration.
By recovering critical minerals, nutrients, biomass, and other valuable resources from municipal and industrial sources, SWBEC is helping reduce waste while creating sustainable pathways for resource recovery that support agriculture, manufacturing, clean energy technologies, and future industrial development.
Through partnerships with industry, municipalities, government agencies, and academic institutions, the center continues to develop practical technologies that improve resource efficiency, strengthen domestic resource recovery, and contribute to a resilient circular bioeconomy.
Caption: SWBEC develops sustainable technologies to recover valuable minerals from municipal and industrial sources, including mineral-rich brines, supporting a resilient circular bioeconomy.
Current Research Areas
- Critical mineral recovery
- Biological lineral recovery
- Resource recovery from municipal and industrial sources
- Mineral recovery from brines
- Phosphorus recovery
- Struvite production
- Algae-based resource recovery
- Nutrient recovery technologies
- Wastewater resource recovery
- Advanced separation technologies
- Pilot-scale technology development
- Circular bioeconomy systems
- Technology transfer and commercialization