Oak Ridge National Laboratory is developing new chemical separation methods to recover gallium from domestic zinc refinery residues. Led by researcher Subhamay Pramanik, the project combines computational modeling, molecular design and experimental chemistry.
New Chemical Separation Methods
Oak Ridge National Laboratory is developing new chemical separation methods to recover gallium from domestic zinc refinery residues. The project combines computational modeling, molecular design and experimental chemistry to build selectivity into the chemistry itself.
Led by ORNL researcher Subhamay Pramanik, the team is working with researchers at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, to design molecules that preferentially bind to gallium and capture it from complex metal mixtures.
Project Timeline and Funding
The approximately $2.1 million project is funded by the Department of Energy’s Critical Materials Innovation Hub. It is scheduled to run for 18 months from January 2027 through June 2028.
Within 18 months, the researchers aim to demonstrate efficient and selective gallium recovery from actual industrial feedstocks, evaluate the resins’ reusability and long-term stability, and establish a laboratory-scale separation process.
Key facts and where they come from
- ORNL is developing new chemical separation methods to recover gallium from zinc refinery residues.
The Department of Energy’s (DOE) Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) is developing new chemical separation methods to recover gallium from domestic zinc refinery residues
- The project is led by ORNL researcher Subhamay Pramanik.
Led by ORNL researcher Subhamay Pramanik, the project combines computational modeling
- The project is funded by the CMI Hub for approximately $2.1 million and runs for 18 months from January 2027 through June 2028.
The approximately $2.1 million project is funded by DOE’s Critical Materials Innovation (CMI) Hub and is scheduled to run for 18 months from January 2027 through June 2028.
