: “Developing Biotechnologies for Detection and Recovery of Rare Earth Elements” | W81EWF 22 SOI 0036

Opportunity Information: Apply for W81EWF 22 SOI 0036

The grant opportunity "Developing Biotechnologies for Detection and Recovery of Rare Earth Elements" is a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (ERDC) science and technology research effort aimed at improving how the United States finds, separates, and recovers rare earth elements (REE) from both natural and waste-based domestic sources. REE are essential ingredients in a wide range of modern technologies, including high-strength magnets used in hard drives and other electronics, and specialized components used in lasers. While 17 elements are commonly grouped as rare earths, this opportunity focuses on 16 that are designated critical minerals: cerium, dysprosium, erbium, europium, gadolinium, holmium, lanthanum, lutetium, neodymium, praseodymium, samarium, scandium, terbium, thulium, ytterbium, and yttrium. The notice emphasizes that nearly all of these are in short supply relative to demand (with cerium and lanthanum being the notable exceptions), and that the ability to isolate specific single elements, or controlled mixtures of elements, is important because different technologies require different REE combinations.

A key motivation behind the program is that conventional REE extraction and separation methods are often energy-intensive and heavily reliant on solvents, and they also struggle to separate closely related rare earths from each other in an efficient way. Because many REE have very similar chemical behavior, separating them into high-purity individual elements can be difficult and expensive using standard chemical processes. The opportunity frames biotechnology as a promising alternative, particularly approaches like bioleaching (using organisms to help dissolve metals from solid material) and biosorption (using biological materials to bind and capture metals). However, it also makes clear that existing biological approaches still need major improvements in selectivity (picking one REE over another), efficiency, cost, and scalability before they can be used broadly in real-world recovery systems.

The anticipated work is centered on building and testing biological tools that can both dissolve REE out of solid materials and capture them in a controlled way. The opportunity specifically calls for developing novel microbes with stronger capabilities to extract and bind REE from challenging solid feedstocks such as crushed ore and electronic waste. In parallel, the program seeks methods that improve how biomolecules interact with different rare earths, since the end goal is not just to recover "rare earths" as a bulk mixture, but to speed up recovery of individual elements or discrete mixtures depending on the need. The solicitation also highlights the practical process side of recovery, including technologies that help concentrate REE in process streams and monitor them during processing, since monitoring and stream management are major obstacles when trying to scale lab concepts into industrial workflows.

The work is organized into two main objectives. Objective 1 focuses on increasing the selectivity and affinity of biomolecules for different REE, particularly lanthanides. The project description envisions "semi-synthetic platforms" for lanthanide binding that combine biological scaffolds (proteins and spores) with designed chemical chelation groups. In other words, the work is expected to modify proteins and spores with engineered chemical structures that act as chelators, improving how strongly these biomaterials can concentrate lanthanides and allowing researchers to tune binding strength and selectivity. The notice also encourages the use of computational modeling to further refine specificity, including designing peptides and proteins with a range of binding affinities and preferences across different REE, recognizing that fine discrimination among rare earths is a central technical challenge.

Objective 2 shifts toward scaling and process monitoring. It calls for engineering fluorescent protein surfaces to create biosensors that bind lanthanides with high affinity and selectivity while enabling FRET-based detection (fluorescence resonance energy transfer) in both in vitro and in vivo contexts. The solicitation lists samarium, europium, terbium, and dysprosium as specific lanthanides of interest for these biosensors. These sensors are intended to act as practical tools for tracking REE during processing, measuring how efficiently a stream is being treated, and comparing the performance of different recovery technologies. Alongside biosensor development, the selected awardee is expected to collaborate with ERDC researchers to evaluate approaches that condense or concentrate process streams, with the aim of improving the efficiency of downstream steps (since downstream separation and purification can be a major cost and complexity driver).

On deliverables and knowledge sharing, the opportunity expects regular communication to ERDC through interim reports, with results also shared publicly through conference presentations and peer-reviewed publications. The description stresses that methods and protocols should be documented and robust enough to stand up to peer review, which signals that reproducibility, clear experimental documentation, and defensible performance claims are important evaluation expectations, not just proof-of-concept demonstrations.

The opportunity also signals the kind of expertise likely needed to succeed. It notes that a strong application would typically involve experience with genetic engineering of spores, molecular evolution, and synthetic biology, along with a publication record that demonstrates capability in these areas. That emphasis aligns with the technical direction of the work: engineering biological systems and biomolecules for improved binding and sensing, then integrating those tools into scalable recovery concepts.

From a public benefit standpoint, the grant frames this work as a contribution to building secure domestic supply chains for critical minerals, reducing dependence on foreign sources and improving resilience for industries that rely on REE. It also positions biotechnology-based recovery as a potentially more environmentally friendly alternative to traditional mining and solvent-heavy separation methods, with the promise of lowering environmental damage and climate impacts. Finally, the opportunity suggests that advances in selectively isolating rare earths could translate to better recovery methods for other critical minerals as well, extending the broader impact beyond REE alone.

Administratively, this is a discretionary funding opportunity from the Department of the Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, offered as a cooperative agreement under CFDA 12.630 (science and technology and other research and development). The funding opportunity number is W81EWF 22 SOI 0036, with an award ceiling listed at $350,000. The original closing date shown is 2022-08-19, and the posting indicates the opportunity is restricted to non-federal partners of the Gulf Coast Cooperative Ecosystems Studies Unit (CESU), meaning eligibility is limited to organizations that participate in that specific CESU network rather than open to all applicants.

• The Dept. of the Army -- Corps of Engineers in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled ": “Developing Biotechnologies for Detection and Recovery of Rare Earth Elements”" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 12.630.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2022-07-01.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2022-08-19. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $350,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for W81EWF 22 SOI 0036

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