Impact of organic acids on extraction of rare earth elements: Mechanisms and optimization (Journal Article) (2025)

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Liu, Peidong, et al. "Impact of organic acids on extraction of rare earth elements: Mechanisms and optimization." Journal of Rare Earths, Feb. 2025. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jre.2025.02.012

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Liu, Peidong, Wang, Xu, & Zhang, Wencai (2025). Impact of organic acids on extraction of rare earth elements: Mechanisms and optimization. Journal of Rare Earths. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jre.2025.02.012

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Liu, Peidong, Wang, Xu, and Zhang, Wencai, "Impact of organic acids on extraction of rare earth elements: Mechanisms and optimization," Journal of Rare Earths (2025), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jre.2025.02.012

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@article{osti_2523671, author = {Liu, Peidong and Wang, Xu and Zhang, Wencai}, title = {Impact of organic acids on extraction of rare earth elements: Mechanisms and optimization}, annote = {Organic acids are increasingly recognized as an environmentally friendly and efficient selective leaching agent of critical minerals. However, their impact on subsequent extraction processes remains unclear. This study investigates the extraction behavior of rare earth elements (REEs), representative of critical minerals, in the presence of various organic acids, including citric acid, maleic acid, malonic acid, DL-malic acid, L(+)-tartaric acid, and L-ascorbic acid. The results show that organic acids slightly reduce the extraction of REEs but greatly increase the extraction of aluminum (Al³⁺), making it harder to separate REEs from other elements. To avoid this, it is best to keep organic acid concentrations as low as possible in practical applications. However, by optimizing extraction conditions, these negative effects can be minimized. Specifically, adjusting the contact time between solutions allows for efficient REE extraction while limiting unwanted aluminum extraction. Among the acids tested, malonic acid and L(+)-tartaric acid were found to be the most effective for selectively extracting REEs. Mechanistically, organic acids are likely to form complexes with REEs and D2EHPA during extraction, except for Y (III), offering practical guidelines for optimizing REE recovery. Beyond extraction, this study also highlights a way to recover organic acids by precipitating REEs from stripping solutions using oxalic acid, which adds both environmental and economic benefits. Furthermore, these findings provide useful insights for optimizing REE recovery and offer a reference for extracting other critical minerals from solutions containing organic acids.}, doi = {10.1016/j.jre.2025.02.012}, url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/2523671}, journal = {Journal of Rare Earths}, issn = {ISSN 1002-0721}, place = {United States}, publisher = {Elsevier}, year = {2025}, month = {02}}

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