Opportunities / ENERGY, DEPARTMENT OF

TECHNOLOGY LICENSING OPPORTUNITY: Protein-Based Rare Earth Recovery via Condensation

Description (excerpt)

Protein-Based Rare Earth Recovery via Condensation from scientists at Los Alamos National Laboratory offers a cleaner, flexible way to capture and concentrate rare earth elements from complex liquid mixtures by using a bio-inspired protein system that gathers target metals into separable clusters. The approach is designed to reduce reliance on harsher processing methods while supporting more resilient supply chains for critical materials used across energy, electronics, transportation and advanced manufacturing markets. Because the system is genetically modular, the same platform may be adapted with different Lanmodulin-type metal-binding variants to support selective capture needs across varied feedstocks. How it Works The technology modifies Lanmodulin, a protein known for strong rare earth element binding, by adding an “encapsulation peptide" to the N-terminus of the protein. Once the engineered protein binds rare earth elements in solution, the resulting protein-metal complexes can be triggered for self-assemble into biomolecular condensates, which are larger clusters that can be removed from the liquid. The material can then be separated and concentrated through various means–such as centrifugation, filtration, and sedimentation–reducing the need for immobilizing the protein on a column or other fixed support. Technical Description Rare earth elements are important to modern technologies; yet, processing and purification can be difficult and environmentally damaging. Protein-Based Rare Earth Recovery via Condensation addresses that problem through EP-LanM, an engineered version of Lanmodulin that changes its material state when rare earth elements are present. Rather than focusing only on changing which rare earth elements Lanmodulin binds, this technology changes how the protein behaves after binding, turning dissolved protein-metal complexes into recoverable droplets. The metals can be harvested from the protein droplets, and the resultant free-protein itself can be recycled into iterative separations. The protein architecture is modular, with the encapsulation peptide fused to Lanmodulin so the protein can self-assemble in response to rare earth element binding. The assembled EP-LanM-rare earth complexes can be captured through simple centrifugation, filtration, or sedimentation, which may simplify processing compared with approaches that require immobilization on a column. The modular design may also support use with other Lanmodulin derivatives t …

View the official notice on SAM.gov →