The Elemental Hub is pleased to announce the successful awardees of its first round of Business Interaction Vouchers (BIV Round 1), supporting cutting-edge projects that advance sustainable, bio-based solutions for critical element recovery and industrial biotechnology.
The funding round will help researchers and industry partners develop innovative approaches to resource recovery, circular economy, and low-carbon technologies.
Three projects have been awarded funding in this inaugural round:
Dr Liz Rylott- University of York
Award: £49,742
Project: Assessing ability of plants and microbes to establish vegetative cover and remove rare earth elements from Angolan mine tailings and soils
Partners: Natural History Museum and Pansana Plc.
Rare earth elements (REEs) are essential for modern technologies including smartphones, electric cars and renewable energy systems. However, the mining of these elements often causes serious environmental damage, contaminating soils, harming biodiversity and leaving behind landscapes that are difficult to restore.
Researchers are exploring how to use biomass plant species to gently recover these technology critical elements from contaminated or low-grade soils in a process called phytomining. In addition to recovering REEs plants and associated microbes can stabilise and clean polluted environments helping to restore former mining sites through phytoremediation. This approach reduces the need for expensive and disruptive clean-up operations and allows damaged land to be brought back into productive use.
This research will enable academics at UoY and NHM to develop collaborative partnerships with Pensana, a REE-mining company. It also supports the BBSRC goals of Industrial Biotechnology and Bioenergy, in “the use of biological resources for producing and processing materials, chemicals and energy.” The project will test Eucalyptus, a species for which there are existing protocols for genetic modification and identify associated beneficial microbes. These biological tools can then be engineered to further enhance greener ways to manage waste and recover critical elements needed for the UK’s clean energy transition.
This work also contributes to the mission of the Elemental Hub, which brings together scientists, industry and communities to secure the sustainable supply of critical elements. Plant-based technologies can help close the loop between environmental clean-up and resource recovery, supporting a more circular and resilient economy.
Professor Sam Hay- University of Manchester
Award: £37,808
Project: Evolution of Calmodulin into a Lanmodulin-like Lanthanide Binding Protein for Biotechnological Application
Partners: LanthaGen Bio Ltd.
Some rare earth elements, called Lanthanides (Ln), are vital metals used in chemotherapy, wind turbines, electric vehicles, and smartphones. However, current extraction and separation methods are energy intensive, carbon-heavy, and depend on harsh chemical solvents that damage the environment. This project aims to develop a greener, biology-based alternative for lanthanide recovery using engineered proteins that can selectively capture these valuable metals.
We will evolve a natural calcium-binding protein, calmodulin, into a protein with strong selection for these lanthanides, which in nature is a lanthanide-type protein. Using advanced protein engineering, automated lab systems and computer simulations, we will identify and optimise protein variants that bind specifically to dysprosium (Dy³⁺), one of the most critical rare-earth elements. The best-performing proteins will then be tested for real-world applications, such as recovering lanthanides from electronic waste streams i.e. waste smartphones.
This research directly supports the BBSRC remit in Industrial Biotechnology and Bioenergy; “the use of biological resources for producing and processing materials, chemicals and energy.” By harnessing synthetic biology and directed evolution, the project establishes a low carbon, solvent-free biotechnology for metal extraction and recycling. In the long term, these protein-based systems could help secure sustainable rare earth supplies for the UK and global industries, including automotive, clean energy, and electronics, while reducing chemical waste and carbon emissions.
Dr Ana Santos- Natural History Museum
Award: £41,489
Project: Bio-solutions for detinning tin-plated scrap to enable low-carbon steel recycling (BIOTIN)
Partners: University of Manchester and Tata Steel.
Steel is essential for modern life, used in everything from cars and buildings to food cans. However, traditional steelmaking using blast furnaces releases large amounts of carbon dioxide. Sustainability is at the core for Tata Steel and it is leading a major transformation by switching to electric arc furnace (EAF) technology, which uses recycled scrap steel and can reduce CO₂ emissions more than 90%. This will make a significant positive impact on the UK’s overall carbon footprint, accounting for about 1.5% reduction in total direct emissions. To make this change successful, Tata Steel must use clean scrap steel. Unfortunately, much of the available scrap, such as food and aerosol cans, contains tin coatings and plastic lacquers that reduce steel quality when melted.
Current chemical methods to remove these coatings are expensive and create toxic waste. This project will explore an innovative biological approach to remove tin using engineering biology systems to “clean” the scrap under mild, environmentally friendly conditions, turning contaminated waste into valuable raw material.
This bio-based approach has the potential to make steel recycling cleaner, cheaper, and more sustainable, helping the UK meet its net-zero goals while reducing waste exports. This project fits within the Industrial Biotechnology and Bioenergy (IBBE) remit of the BBSRC, as it uses biological resources to process materials and reduce industrial emissions. It also aligns with the Engineering Biology Hub’s mission by applying biological design and engineering principles to create greener manufacturing processes that close material loops and support the transition to a circular, low-carbon economy.
————————
The Elemental Hub’s BIV program continues to support collaborations between academia, industry, and communities, promoting innovative solutions that bridge environmental stewardship and critical element recovery.
These first awardees highlight the growing role of engineering biology in driving sustainable technology and industrial transformation.