Composite Materials For Adsorption of Rare Earth Metal Ions

Rare earth elements (REEs) are vital across numerous sectors, from nuclear and architecture to electronics and medicine, due to their unique properties. Meeting the growing demand for REEs necessitates innovative recovery methods from waste and recycling. This review explores the adsorption of REEs using polymer composites, including biopolymers, synthetic polymers, and conducting polymers. These composites demonstrate remarkable adsorption capacity and selectivity for REEs. This review explored several natural and synthetic polymers, composites, and nanocomposites as adsorbents, focusing on chemical structures, kinetics, adsorption capacity, processes, and polarity for REE uptake from aqueous solutions. Notably, benzyl phosphate-based polymers achieve the highest adsorption capacity at 301 mg/g, while polypyrrole sawdust exhibits the lowest at 6 mg/g. Nanocomposites, however, excel with adsorption capacities exceeding 900 mg/g. This review underscores the critical importance of REE recovery and recycling for a sustainable and clean global environment.