Novel 2D-3D Materials for Lanthanide Recovery from Nuclear Waste

MaLaR aims to develop an innovative approach leading to technology for the selective recovery of rare-earth metals from nuclear waste.

It involves exploiting materials assembled from 2D sheets into 3D structures to improve the efficiency and selectivity of the recovery process of lanthanides from spent nuclear fuel.

Traditionally, lanthanide recovery has been a challenging and resource-intensive process. 3D materials based on 2D sheets and 3D porous architectures offer increased surface areas and unique chemical properties that can facilitate the separation and recovery of lanthanides from nuclear and other industrial wastes.Utilizing specialized infrastructure for radiochemistry available at the HZDR Alpha-Lab in Germany, the Marcoule Institute in Separation Chemistry, the University of Montpellier, and the HZDR Rossendorf Beamline at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility in France, dedicated to actinide science, together with the expertise provided by Umeå University in Sweden for the design of new materials, the material characterization capabilities of National University of Science and Technology Politehnica Bucharest in Romania, and knowledge of Uppsala University in Sweden in theory and modelling, the MaLaR team will be able to develop new approach for recovery of lanthanides using complementary competencies.

Fundamental knowledge at the atomic and molecular levels, gained at the synchrotron by newly developed methods during the in-situ chemical sorption reaction on radionuclides combined with electronic structure calculations will be used to design new porous materials, by connecting the 2D sheets into the high surface area 3D architectures, engineered for separation of actinides and lanthanides from strongly acidic nuclear waste extracts.

Our goal is to create a powerful close-to-the-market activity and provide high-impact novel technological solutions for the field of nuclear waste management.