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ContactAbout Our RIC R&D Plan
The Critical Minerals and Materials RIC R&D Plan is a critically important NETL research program that integrates data from initiatives across NETL’s critical minerals and materials (CMM) program to transition the United States from a dependent importer of CMM into a net exporter. The RIC R&D Plan collates data from initiatives such as the Carbon Ore, Rare Earth, and Critical Minerals (CORE-CM) initiative, the Technology Commercialization Fund (TCF), and the ClaiMM (Critical Minerals and Materials) platform and employs that data to fill the gaps in the understanding of the domestic CM landscape. The RIC R&D Plan also interfaces with other programs at NETL, including the Minerals to Materials Supply Chain Research Facility (METALLIC) and the Process Optimization and Modeling for Minerals Sustainability (PrOMMiS) to scale developing promising technologies in CMM.
The 7 RIC R&D Plan Research Thrusts
The RIC R&D Plan at NETL includes 7 research thrusts, as covered below. Unlike other NETL program areas that focus on a specific stream of the CMM value chain, the RIC R&D Plan spans this value chain and acts as a stable core upon which NETL has built its CMM program.
Learn More About Recent Projects
Accelerating Valorization via AI and HERMES
Spanning 7 national laboratories, HERMES is a new initiative to develop and validate streamlined methods to characterize and valorize unconventional feedstocks.
Using DOE’s User Facilities to Find CMs in Fossil Feedstocks
Researchers at NETL are tapping advanced DOE user facilities to help determine the binding environment for CMs and REEs in complex geologic matrices
Discovering New CMM Recovery Methods for Fossil Energy Related Wastes
NETL scientists are developing innovative and targeted CMM extraction/processing methods via geochemistry and chemical engineering from multiple fossil energy related wastes, such as fly ash, acid mine drainage treatment wastes, and oil and gas produced waters.
Extracting Critical Minerals from Shale-Gas Reservoirs Using Precision Techniques
NETL is revaluating US sedimentary formations for energy production, and through technological advancement of process, developing methods to extract CMM from the rock matrix with a focus on enhanced use of existing infrastructure.
