Penn State researchers have discovered that a bacterial protein can selectively bind to different rare earth elements, offering a new and more efficient way to harvest and purify these essential components of modern technologies
Rare earth elements, like neodymium and dysprosium, are a critical component to almost all modern technologies, from smartphones to hard drives, but they are notoriously hard to separate from the Earth s crust and from one another. Scientists have discovered a new mechanism by which bacteria can select between different rare earth elements, using the ability of a bacterial protein to bind to another unit of itself, or dimerize, when it is bound to certain rare earths, but prefer to remain a single unit, or monomer, when bound to others.
Rare earth elements, like neodymium and dysprosium, are a critical component to almost all modern technologies, from smartphones to hard drives, but they are notoriously hard to separate from the Earth’s crust and from one another. Penn State scientists have discovered a new mechanism by which bacteria can select between different rare earth elements, using the ability of a bacterial protein to bind to another unit of itself, or “dimerize,” when it is bound to certain rare earths, but prefer to remain a single unit, or “monomer,” when bound to others.
miragenews.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from miragenews.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
American Rare Earths Ltd partners with US research organisations to produce new rare earth processing technology proactiveinvestors.com.au - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from proactiveinvestors.com.au Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.