# US 2025/0154622 A1 · Recovery system of rare earth elements based on membrane applications > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2025/0154622 A1 - Document ID: US20250154622A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 18/837,625 - Filed: 2023-02-10 - Published: 2025-05-15 - Earliest claimed: 2022-02-10 - Assignees: Istanbul Teknik Universitesi - Applicants: Istanbul Teknik Universitesi - Inventors: Borte KOSE MUTLU; Ayse YUKSEKDAG; Ismail KOYUNCU; Mark Robert WIESNER - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20250154622A1 ## CPC - C02F 9/00: Multistage treatment of water, waste water or sewage - C22B 3/02: Apparatus therefor - B01D 11/0288: {Applications, solvents} - B01D 61/58: Multistep processes - C22B 3/22: by physical processes, e.g. by filtration, by magnetic means {, or by thermal decomposition} (treatment or purification of solutions by liquid-liquid extraction C22B3/26) - C22B 7/007: {by acid leaching} - C22B 59/00: Obtaining rare earth metals - B01D 61/027: {Nanofiltration} - B01D 61/147: {Microfiltration} - B01D 2313/243: Pumps - B01D 2317/02: Elements in series - C02F 1/20: by degassing, i.e. liberation of dissolved gases (degasification of liquids in general B01D19/00; arrangement of degassing apparatus in boiler feed supply F22D) - C02F 1/442: {by nanofiltration} - C02F 1/444: {by ultrafiltration or microfiltration} - C02F 1/66: by neutralisation; pH adjustment (for degassing C02F1/20; using ion-exchange C02F1/42; for flocculation or precipitation of suspended impurities C02F1/52; for removing dissolved compounds C02F1/58) - C02F 2101/101: {Sulfur compounds} - C02F 2101/20: Heavy metals or heavy metal compounds - Y02P 10/20: Recycling - C02F: TREATMENT OF WATER, WASTE WATER, SEWAGE, OR SLUDGE (separation in general B01D; special arrangements on waterborne vessels of installations for treating water, waste water or sewage, e.g. for producing fresh water, B63J; adding materials to water to prevent corrosion C23F; treating radioactively-contaminated liquids G21F9/04; regeneration of reactants for recirculation into processes, see the relevant places for the processes) - C22B: PRODUCTION AND REFINING OF METALS (electrolytic C25); PRETREATMENT OF RAW MATERIALS - B01D: SEPARATION (separating solids from solids by wet methods B03B, B03D; by pneumatic jigs or tables B03B; by other dry methods B07; magnetic or electrostatic separation of solid materials from solid materials or fluids, separation by high-voltage electric fields B03C; centrifuges, vortex apparatus B04; presses per se for squeezing-out liquid from liquid-containing material B30B9/02; treatment of water C02F, e.g. softening by ion-exchange C02F1/42; {arrangements of air intake cleaners in gas turbine plants F02C7/05} ; arrangements or mounting of filters in air-conditioning, air-humidification or ventilation F24F13/28) - Y02P: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES IN THE PRODUCTION OR PROCESSING OF GOODS ## Abstract A rare earth element recovery system and method are provided. The system includes a heated water bath, a jacketed leaching reactor connected to the heated water bath, a leaching pump connected to the jacketed leaching reactor, a concentrated acidic leaching peristaltic pump for transferring a concentrated acidic leach in connection with a concentrated acidic leaching chamber, a membrane contactor connected to the concentrated acidic leaching peristaltic pump, a stripping phase leaching chamber, a stripping phase peristaltic pump connected to the stripping phase leaching chamber, a paddle mixer, a microfiltration unit connected to the leaching pump, a high pressure pump connected to the microfiltration unit, and a nanofiltration unit. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A rare earth element recovery system based on membrane applications comprising: a heated water bath used to carry out a leaching process at a constant temperature, a jacketed leaching reactor connected to the heated water bath and allowing a leaching of secondary sources in a solid phase under the constant temperature and a constant pH, a leaching pump connected to the jacketed leaching reactor and used for a transfer of the secondary sources in the solid phase from the jacketed leaching reactor, a concentrated acidic leaching peristaltic pump for transferring a concentrated acidic leach in connection with a concentrated acidic leaching chamber, a membrane contactor connected to the concentrated acidic leaching peristaltic pump and ensuring a concentrated acidic phase, a stripping phase and a membrane material saturated with an organic phase to be in contact, a stripping phase leaching chamber for the stripping phase, connected to the membrane contactor, a stripping phase peristaltic pump connected to the stripping phase leaching chamber, and used to transfer the stripping phase concentrated by a membrane solvent extraction to the membrane contactor, a paddle mixer used to ensure a mixing of the jacketed leaching reactor, the concentrated acidic leaching chamber and the stripping phase leaching chamber, wherein the paddle mixer is a full-mix reactor, a microfiltration unit connected to the leaching pump and configured to pre-treat the secondary sources in the solid phase to remove hydroxide floc precipitates formed after a pH treatment and particulate matters from an acidic leaching, a high pressure pump connected to the microfiltration unit, and configured for transferring an acidic leach treated by the microfiltration unit, a nanofiltration unit comprising nanofiltration membranes, pressure vessel and inlet and outlet components for a pre-concentration in connection with the high pressure pump, the concentrated acidic leaching chamber connected to the nanofiltration unit, wherein the concentrated acidic leach is transferred to the concentrated acidic leaching chamber. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The rare earth element recovery system according to claim 1, wherein the membrane contactor comprises a hollow fibre supported liquid polymer based membrane. ### Claim 3 A method for a recovery of rare earth elements based on membrane applications, comprising the following process steps: leaching secondary sources in a solid phase in a jacketed leaching reactor by stirring with a stirrer under a constant temperature and a constant pH with a heated water bath, transferring an obtained leach to a microfiltration unit with a leaching pump, pre-treating an acidic leaching solution in the microfiltration unit operated by a vacuum pressure, to remove hydroxide floc solutions and particulate matters from an acidic leaching, wherein the hydroxide floc solutions and the particulate matters are formed after a pH increase in the acidic leaching solution, transferring a pre-treated acidic leaching solution obtained as a result of a pre-treatment process to a nanofiltration unit by a high pressure pump, pre-concentrating the pre-treated acidic leaching solution in a thin film coated nanofiltration unit under a pressure of 10 bar-20 bar and a pH of 1-1.5, storing a concentrated acidic leaching phase obtained from the nanofiltration unit in a concentrated acidic leaching chamber, transferring an acidic leaching phase concentrated by a concentrated acidic leaching pump to a membrane contactor unit, performing an extraction process by a contact of a concentrated acidic feed leaching and a stripping phase solution using a flat sheet supported liquid membrane saturated with an organic phase in the membrane contactor unit, transferring a concentrated stripping phase after an extraction from the membrane contactor unit to a stripping phase leaching chamber, re-using the concentrated stripping phase in the stripping phase leaching chamber by transferring the concentrated stripping phase to the membrane contactor unit with a stripping phase peristaltic pump, storing a concentrated acidic leaching phase obtained from the membrane contactor unit in the concentrated acidic leaching chamber, continuous mixing the jacketed leaching reactor, the concentrated acidic leaching chamber, and the stripping phase leaching chamber by a paddle mixer.