Dr. Patrick Zhang, Director of Mining and Beneficiation at the Florida Industrial and Phosphate Research Institute (FIPR Institute), received $150,000 in collaborative research funding from the Critical Materials Institute (CMI) for work on recovery of rare earth elements and high-value phosphorus from phosphoric acid sludge.
This will fund a new project associated with previous FIPR Institute and CMI research “Recovery of Rare Earths and Uranium from Phosphate.” When asked about the impact of the new work, Dr. Zhang stated that it has “great potential for the phosphate industry and rare earth element recovery efforts.”
Technologies developed to recover rare earth elements from phosphate fertilizer materials would help alleviate the supply problem for the United States and provide added industrial value to Florida phosphate mining.
For complete information, link to the story on the FIPR Institute website: http://www.fipr.state.fl.us/news_items/fipr-institute-awarded-collaborative-research-funding-from-critical-materials-institute/