German middle class news | 15.12.14/21/33, XNUMX:XNUMX pm
Scientists want to recycle valuable substances such as rare earths with the help of algae. For this they filter industrial wastewater from waste dumps. The metal ions of the valuable raw materials dock on the surface of the microalgae. Rare earths are used to make high technology products such as smartphones and tablets.
Scientists at the Friedrich Alexander University (FAU) are mining the elements of rare earths with the help of algae from wastewater. The sustainable use of resources, such as rare earths, is a central issue when it comes to a large number of high-tech technologies that are used, among other things, in the context of renewable energies.
Because rare earths are very expensive to isolate and currently almost exclusively offered by China in the market, the development of intelligent and environmentally friendly recycling methods is of great importance to the industry. For environmental reasons, two years ago China already limited the export of the precious raw material.
The FAU in Erlangen-Nuremberg has developed a procedure with which the elements of rare earths from industrial wastewater, which originate, for example, from mining waste from mining activities, can be obtained in an environmentally friendly way.
The use of rare earths is of great importance not only for the IT and consumer electronics industry, but also for the production of wind and solar power plants and thus for the implementation of the renewable energy concept of the Federal Government.
Within Germany, the state of Bavaria has one of the highest densities of companies in the chemical, metalworking and special technology sectors, all of which are also active in the renewable energy sector.
Rainer Buchholz, who heads the Department of Biochemical Engineering at FAU, has been experimenting with various types of microalgae for a decade. One focus of his work is on that Algae to recover valuable materials that can be of benefit to humans - From use in medicine to food production. "Microalgae are a very promising research object. Whether for the extraction of raw materials or the better use of solar energy - as biochemical engineers we try to make the excellent properties of microalgae usable for the society ", so Buchholz.
In the course of these experiments, indications have emerged that Metal ions from dilute solutions can be excellently "docked" to the surface of microalgae, As part of the project, the Erlangen researchers therefore want to develop a process for the economic and ecological extraction of valuable metals with a specific focus on rare earths, which differs fundamentally from the established bacterial processes. For the first time, it relies on a geo-technological approach to securing sustainable raw materials.
Microalgae can be produced far more cheaply compared to bacterial systemsbecause they do not place high demands on the environment and nutrition. Initial results also show that metal binding works even with dead algae. This makes uncomplicated use possible in practice. As part of the project, the scientists around Buchholz want to test how metals can be recovered from the resulting laden algae biomass.
"We need a raw material turnaround," demands Environment Minister Ulrike Scharf. "Today's waste is the raw material of tomorrow. The goal is clear: we want to reduce the use of new raw materials and recover valuable raw materials in the best possible way. "The depletion of nature is at the expense of coming generations.
Source: http://www.deutsche-mittelstands-nachrichten.de/2014/12/69235/
