From landfills to missiles: US firm to extract rare earths from e-waste for defense

This initiative aligns with the 2024 National Defense Industrial Strategy’s goal of strengthening domestic production of critical minerals to enhance supply chain resilience, the Pentagon stated.

According to Dr. Laura Taylor-Kale, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Industrial Base Policy, a resilient mine-to-magnet supply chain requires diverse sources for rare earth elements.

REEcycle’s capabilities will help reduce the United States’ dependence on foreign sources by extracting full value from materials that would otherwise be discarded in landfills, she noted.

REEcycle’s proprietary processes recover over 98% of the rare earth elements neodymium, praseodymium, dysprosium, and terbium, which are crucial for the NdFeB magnets used in key national defense systems.

E-waste recovery supports DoD’s efforts to secure rare earth supply

Founded in 2012 at the University of Houston, the REEcycle story began when Dr. Samarasekere, a chemist, was inspired by two Department of Energy (DoE) reports on critical materials for future energy use. In 2013, he discovered a chemical reaction that could extract 15 of the 17 rare earth elements from discarded electronic waste. 

The team then focused on bringing this innovative process to market, with particular emphasis on neodymium and dysprosium, the two rare earth elements the DoE identified as most critical for clean energy and most at risk in terms of supply. From 2014 to 2016, REEcycle earned top honors and national awards at business plan competitions hosted by leading universities. In late 2014, the company secured all three top prizes at the DoE’s National Clean Energy Prize Competition.

The Texas company claims to have the only recycling process that can safely and sustainably recover the highest amount of rare earth elements from e-waste while minimizing environmental impact. After restarting its demonstration plant, REEcycle now plans to launch a commercial facility and position itself as a supplier to companies involved in metallization and magnet manufacturing.

According to Anthony Di Stasio, Director of the Manufacturing Capability Expansion and Investment Prioritization (MCEIP) directorate, the latest award will enable REEcycle to recover critical materials from electronic waste, supporting the Department of Defense’s efforts to expand the supply of rare earths needed for defense production.

This is the sixth award from the DPA Purchases Office, totaling $295.9 million, since the start of fiscal 2025. It supports the 2024 National Defense Industrial Strategy’s goal of boosting domestic production of critical minerals and strengthening supply chain resilience, the DoD noted.