American Resources Corporation (NASDAQ:AREC), in conjunction with sponsored research partner Purdue University, has successfully achieved a high purity of the rare earth element (REE) — neodymium (Nd).
The company said it used its exclusively licensed, ligand assisted displacement (LAD) chromatography process and technology.
Through the recycling of waste permanent magnets, American Resources said it was able to separate, isolate, and purify the inherent neodymium to a 99.5% purity, a standard required for high-quality permanent magnet manufacturing.
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"Having purification technology, as part of our ‘Capture, Process, Purify’ technology process chain, that is able to produce isolated rare earth elements at a 99.5% purity or greater is a game changer for the commercialization and manufacturing of permanent magnets,” said CEO Mark Jensen in a statement.
“Today we can say that we achieved this result alongside our technology partner at Purdue University at a cost point and environmental standard that is extremely competitive on a worldwide basis. This result is extremely exciting, and equally important for our nation as the demand and need for rare earth elements is growing at a pace north of 12% a year.”
Jensen added: “We are not aware of any other technology in the world that can compete on costs or environmental standards and based on these results we are fully committed to bring this technology to the market as efficiently and effectively as possible."
Developed independently in 1984 by General Motors and Sumitomo Special Metals, neodymium magnets are considered the strongest type of permanent magnet available commercially. Such magnets have replaced other types of magnets in many applications that require strong permanent magnets, such as electric motors, hard disk drives, and magnetic fasteners.
"Achieving a 99.5% purity level is a terrific milestone and showcases our ability to help restore the domestic supply chain of these critical materials and do so in a timeframe that the market demands,” said Linda Wang, a professor of chemical engineering at Purdue University.
“Additionally, our process chain of technologies enables us to enhance our domestic supply chain of these critical materials in the most sustainable and environmentally friendly and beneficial ways ever developed. We believe this is where the US needs to be to drive innovation, become truly energy independent and compete with China.”
Under its recently expanded sponsored research program with Purdue University, the company said it is refining and further advancing its REE purification technology for various feedstocks which include recycled waste permanent magnets, waste lithium-ion batteries, and coal waste as well as byproducts using LAD chromatography.
Additionally, American Resources is in the final stage of site selection for its critical and REE purification facility which will initially be developed as a small-scale plant, with the ability to scale to full commercialization.
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