The development of effective materials for uranium extraction from seawater is vital for advancing sustainable energy solutions. However, the efficient recovery of uranium from seawater presents significant challenges due to its extremely low concentration, the presence of competing ions, and the complex marine environment. To address these issues, various materials such as inorganic and organic sorbents, chelating resins, nanostructured sorbents, and composite materials have been explored. More recently, the functionalization of carbon-based materials for enhanced adsorption properties has attracted much interest because of their high specific surface area, excellent chemical and thermal stability, and tunable porosity. These materials include activated carbon, graphene oxide, biochar, carbon cloths, carbon nanotubes, and carbon aerogels. The enhancement of carbonaceous materials is typically achieved through surface functionalization with chelating groups and the synthesis of composite materials that integrate other high-performance sorbents. This review aims to summarize the work of these functionalized carbon materials, focusing on their adsorption capacity, selectivity, and durability for uranium adsorption. This is followed by a discussion on the binding mechanisms of uranium with major chelating functional groups grafted on carbonaceous sorbents. Finally, an outlook for future research is suggested. We hope that this review will be helpful to researchers engaged in related studies.

Gallium is a critical metal for high-tech industries, with its global demand surging in recent years. Currently, approximately 90% of primary gallium is extracted from Bayer liquor. Chelating resins such as amidoxime sorbents are widely adopted commercial materials for this purpose. However, gallium recovery from such highly caustic media remains a formidable challenge, as gallium is present at low concentrations while aluminate ions are hundreds of times more abundant, and the medium is rich in competing vanadate ions and humic substances. These interfering components impede both adsorption and desorption cycles, leading to a progressive decline in resin performance and a subsequent increase in operational costs. In recent years, functionalized carbon-based materials have gained significant traction. This growing interest is motivated by the carbon-based materials’ exceptional chemical resilience across both acidic and alkaline environments, tunable surface chemistry, and facile re-functionalization. This mini-review synthesizes recent progress in functionalized carbon-based materials for gallium recovery, with a particular emphasis on their adsorption performance and mechanistic insights. At the end of the paper, major challenges and research gaps are identified, and future research directions are proposed.