A team of Chinese scientists has developed a new process that could ignificantly reduce the time needed to extract rare earths from ore, and it could also cut industry pollution.
Extracting the trace metal elements is difficult and takes days to complete, but researchers have found a way to shorten the process to minutes. The 17 trace metal elements in rare earths are critical to the manufacture of nearly all hi-tech products, from semiconductors to smartphones and stealth fighter jets.
https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3012641/chinese-scientists-find-faster-way-extract-rare-earths-may-also
A 2023 start-up aiming to make recycling convenient and accessible to all is about to go national. The aim is to provide people with a home pick-up option for some of the "trickier" items the normal recycling bins can't handle - including soft plastics. https://wastemanagementreview.com.au/recyclesmart-goes-national/
A Kyushu University study (2021) estimated there were 24.4 trillion pieces of microplastics in the world's upper oceans or roughly 30 billion 500-ml plastic water bottles. Microplastics are tiny, toxic and very hard to remove from the environment. But researchers in the US have discovered that some Natural Deep Eutectic Solvents (NADES) can attract and bind microplastics, making it easier to remove them from the environment. And the N in NADES is key - natural - in this instance, think extracts from plants. https://www.research.uky.edu/news/researchers-develop-eco-friendly-magnet-battle-microplastics
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