About this Research Topic

Background

The supply of strategic elements is a major challenge for securing the decarbonization of transport and energy. The tension is particularly strong on the elements required to capture and store intermittent energy sources (Li, Ni, Co, Dy, Nd, Pr), and on those allowing to ensure a stable base production of low carbon energy (U, Pu). One of the necessary conditions for the deployment of these technologies is to ensure the sustainable and economically viable production of the necessary materials, with the high grades specified. Most of these elements are currently extracted from mines, with the need to reduce the environmental impact. Alternately, as the demand increases, new types of resources are considered, both in nature, as seawater and brines, and through the collecting and recycling of used batteries, wind turbines magnets, etc. One difficulty with these less conventional resources is the significant dilution of the elements of interest in many other components, often with similar chemical properties, which makes their separation difficult. There is hence an urgent and crucial need for the development of new processes and technology, among which solvent extraction has a major role to play.

This Research Topic aims to promote new tools to meet the current challenges faced by solvent extraction manufacturers. On the one hand, intensive research is devoted to the discovery of new extractant systems, solvents, or adsorbents, with improved selectivity. Among the new methods, DFT and molecular simulations can guide their design, and microfluidic tools can accelerate the screening of their performance. On the other hand, their industrial transposition is not straightforward. Mixer-Settler and counter-current column efficiency depends strongly on the achieved drop size distribution and phase separation kinetics. Numerical simulation can help predict them but requires predictive population balance models and hydrodynamic studies. Finally, recycling units must be flexible to adapt to the variability of inputs. This involves proper online instrumentation and efficient process control algorithms.

We welcome the submission of Original Research, Review, Mini Review, and Perspective articles that will provide a factual and prospective picture of the development of tomorrow’s sustainable industrial extraction processes, on themes including, but not limited to:
• Solvent or adsorbent with improved selectivity
• Thermodynamic and kinetic studies of mass transfer
• Dispersed phase flow modeling and simulation
• Population Balance Modelling.

Keywords: solvent extraction, modeling, mass transfer, manufacturing, extraction processes

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.

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