Considering how important rare earth elements (REEs) are for many different industries, it is important to separate them from other elements. An extractant that binds to REEs inexpensively and selectively even in the presence of interfering ions can be used to develop a useful separation method. This work was designed to recover REEs from spent nickel–metal hydride batteries using ammonium sulfate. The chemical composition of the Ni–MH batteries was examined. The operating leaching conditions of REE extraction from black powder were experimentally optimized. The optimal conditions for the dissolution of approximately 99.98% of REEs and almost all zinc were attained through use of a 300 g/L (NH₄)₂SO₄ concentration after 180 min of leaching time and a 1:3 solid/liquid phase ratio at 120 °C. The kinetic data fit the chemical control model. The separation of total REEs and zinc was conducted under traditional conditions to produce both metal values in marketable forms. The work then shifted to separate cerium as an individual REE through acid baking with HCl, thus leaving pure cerium behind.

Spent Ni–Cd batteries are now considered an important source for many valuable metals. The recovery of cadmium, cobalt, and nickel from spent Ni–Cd Batteries has been performed in this study. The optimum leaching process was achieved using 20% H₂SO₄, solid/liquid (S/L) 1/5 at 80 °C for 6 h. The leaching efficiency of Fe, Cd, and Co was nearly 100%, whereas the leaching efficiency of Ni was 95%. The recovery of the concerned elements was attained using successive different separation techniques. Cd(II) ions were extracted by a solvent, namely, Adogen^® 464, and precipitated as CdS with 0.5% Na₂S solution at pH of 1.25 and room temperature. The extraction process corresponded to pseudo-2nd-order. The prepared PTU-MS silica was applied for adsorption of Co(II) ions from aqueous solution, while the desorption process was performed using 0.3 M H₂SO₄. Cobalt was precipitated at pH 9.0 as Co(OH)₂ using NH₄OH. The kinetic and thermodynamic parameters were also investigated. Nickel was directly precipitated at pH 8.25 using a 10% NaOH solution at ambient temperature. FTIR, SEM, and EDX confirm the structure of the products.

A new nano-silica/chitosan (SiO₂/CS) sorbent was created using a wet process to eliminate uranium(VI) from its solution. Measurements using BET, XRD, EDX, SEM, and FTIR were utilized to analyze the production of SiO₂/CS. The adsorption progressions were carried out by pH, SiO₂/CS dose, temperature, sorbing time, and U(VI) concentration measurements. The optimal condition for U(VI) sorption (165 mg/g) was found to be pH 3.5, 60 mg SiO₂/CS, for 50 min of sorbing time, and 200 mg/L U(VI). Both the second-order sorption kinetics and Langmuir adsorption model were observed to be obeyed by the ability of SiO₂/CS to eradicate U(VI). Thermodynamically, the sorption strategy was a spontaneous reaction and exothermic. According to the findings, SiO₂/CS had the potential to serve as an effectual sorbent for U(VI) displacement.

The Hummer process is applied to generate graphene oxide from carbon stocks’ discharged Zn-C batteries waste. SiO₂ is produced from rice husks through the wet process. Subsequently, SiO₂ reacted with graphene oxide to form silica/graphene oxide (SiO₂/GO) as a sorbent material. XRD, BET, SEM, EDX, and FTIR were employed to characterize SiO₂/GO. Factors affecting U(VI) sorption on SiO₂/GO, including pH, sorption time, a dosage of SiO₂/GO, U(VI) ions’ concentration, and temperature, were considered. The experimental data consequences indicated that the uptake capacity of SiO₂/GO towards U(VI) is 145.0 mg/g at a pH value of 4.0. The kinetic calculations match the pseudo second-order model quite well. Moreover, the sorption isotherm is consistent with the Langmuir model. The sorption procedures occur spontaneously and randomly, as well as exothermically. Moreover, SiO₂/GO has essentially regenerated with a 0.8 M H₂SO₄ and 1:50 S:L phase ratio after 60 min of agitation time. Lastly, the sorption and elution were employed in seven cycles to check the persistent usage of SiO₂/GO.