Taking technology to another level, the Recycle Force facility is home to the first machine of its kind, which recovers rare earth materials from electronic waste.
Currently, the rare earth minerals found in hard drives, cell phones and other consumer electronics don’t get recycled, often ending up in landfills.
Ikenna Nlebedim, a research scientist with the Ames National Laboratory, said they hope to change that. “What we need to do is to look for a way to strengthen our supply chain, and that is really what we are trying to do here,” he said.
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Critical Materials