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WVU pilot extracts rare earths from mine drainage

8/22/2026

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Summary

WVU Extracts Rare-Earths

West Virginia University researchers extract rare earths from acid-mine drainage at Mount Storm.
The pilot produces roughly four tons of rare earth oxides annually, with 45% heavy elements.
Engineer David Hoffman says scaling to 300 metric tons could meet 7-8% of global demand.
WVU startup signed a preliminary deal with REalloys to treat extracts, despite limited U.S. processing capacity.

Summary

DOE Funds Recovery

The U.S. Department of Energy announced more than $160 million to fund nine critical-mineral recovery projects.
Assistant Secretary Audrey Robertson said the money will de-risk commercial-scale production technologies.
The projects will target scandium, copper, antimony and rare-earth elements from industrial feedstocks.
The funding is part of a $1 billion plan to scale mining, processing and manufacturing nationwide.

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WVU Extracts Rare-Earths

West Virginia University researchers extract rare earths from acid-mine drainage at Mount Storm.
The pilot produces roughly four tons of rare earth oxides annually, with 45% heavy elements.
Engineer David Hoffman says scaling to 300 metric tons could meet 7-8% of global demand.
WVU startup signed a preliminary deal with REalloys to treat extracts, despite limited U.S. processing capacity.

1 / 2