West Virginia University recovers heavy rare earths from coal mine wastewater, producing ~4 tonnes of oxides annually—but commercial viability remains unproven.
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Mission Critical Materials
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About Mission Critical Materials
Mission Critical Materials (MCM) is a US-based critical-minerals technology company that operates a modular recovery platform selectively extracting high-value heavy rare earth elements from acid mine drainage, a challenging waste stream generated by legacy mining. Positioned as an upstream material platform ahead of separation and magnet production, MCM recovers high-purity mixed rare earth oxides including strategically important heavy elements such as dysprosium, terbium, yttrium and gadolinium, alongside magnet-critical light rare earths neodymium and praseodymium, which feed high-performance permanent magnets used in advanced motors and defense systems. In January 2026, Mission Critical Materials signed a memorandum of understanding with REalloys Inc. to establish what the partners describe as the first fully domestic US mine-waste-to-magnet supply chain, converting acid mine drainage into heavy rare earth metals and magnets for defense manufacturing and strategic stockpiles, leveraging federally funded upstream innovation to reduce reliance on foreign supply.
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West Virginia University's rare earth initiative aims to recover critical minerals from acid mine drainage, but commercial viability and separation
