CAREER: Selective Electrochemical Recovery of Critical Metals Leveraging Electrolyte Chemistry, Interfacial Reactions, and Redox Behaviors

Population growth and urban development are increasing the global demand for raw materials. This rising demand creates supply risks that can affect the economy and national security. Critical metals are especially important because they are needed for clean energy, transportation, defense systems, and modern electronics. This CAREER project studies an electrochemical method to recover critical metals from waste materials. The method uses controlled reactions to dissolve and separate metals from complex waste, such as used lithium-ion batteries. Compared with current recovery methods, this approach can improve metal separation while reducing chemical use and environmental impact. The project examines how applied voltage, solution chemistry, and reactions at the metal surface affect how metals dissolve and separate. By improving this understanding, the project will support stronger and more reliable U.S. supplies of critical metals while also training students through research and outreach activities. This CAREER project establishes an integrated research, education, and outreach program that advances selective electrochemical leaching for critical metal recovery from complex feedstocks, using lithium-ion batteries as a model system. The research investigates how applied potential, electrolyte speciation, interfacial coordination, and redox kinetics govern metal dissolution pathways and selectivity, addressing fundamental gaps in electrochemical separation science and environmental engineering. The project tests hypotheses that metal selectivity is controlled not only by thermodynamic redox potentials but also by electrolyte chemistry and interfacial processes, and that temporal modulation of electrochemical potential can exploit kinetic differences among metals with overlapping standard potentials. To validate these hypotheses, ligand-assisted dissolution experiments, electroanalytical methods, and speciation-informed thermodynamic modeling are integrated to quantify redox behavior at reactive interfaces, while programmable potential waveforms and real cathode materials are used to evaluate mechanism-driven leaching strategies under realistic conditions. The resulting mechanistic framework guides the design of modular leaching systems that connect molecular-scale processes to macroscale separation performance. Educational activities integrate research findings into undergraduate laboratory modules and training experiences that strengthen understanding of electrochemical processing and critical metals extraction, while outreach efforts engage community college students and broader audiences through hands-on demonstrations and accessible learning tools. These vertically integrated efforts advance fundamental knowledge, develop the future workforce in critical materials, and support resilient and resource-efficient critical metal supply chains. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. NSF Award ID: 2541617 | Program: 01002627DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT | Principal Investigator: Jihye Kim | Institution: Colorado School of Mines, GOLDEN, CO | Award Amount: $591,656 View on NSF Award Search: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/show-award/?AWD_ID=2541617 View on Research.gov: https://www.research.gov/awardapi-service/v1/awards/2541617.html