SOLUTIONS
Transforming Industrial Waste into Strategic Assets
Across mining, metallurgy and energy industries, billions of tonnes of industrial residues and trillions of litres of process water contain valuable critical minerals that remain unrecovered. Cerion Praxis develops biological separation technologies that help industrial companies transform these existing liabilities into new sources of revenue while supporting environmental stewardship and resource efficiency.
Our solutions are designed to increase the economic value of existing industrial assets—not by changing core operations, but by recovering valuable critical minerals already present in waste streams, process waters and legacy deposits.
Unlocking Value from Mine Water
Mining operations continuously pump and treat enormous volumes of water that often contain dissolved critical minerals. Depending on the geology, mine waters may contain yttrium (Y), scandium (Sc), lanthanum (La), cerium (Ce), neodymium (Nd), praseodymium (Pr), dysprosium (Dy), terbium (Tb), as well as cobalt (Co), nickel (Ni), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), manganese (Mn) and other strategic metals.
Cerion Praxis enables mine operators to convert existing water management systems into valuable resource recovery assets, creating additional revenue streams while supporting water treatment, regulatory compliance and environmental stewardship.
Creating New Revenue from Mine Tailings
Mine tailings represent one of the world’s largest secondary resources of critical minerals. Billions of tonnes of previously discarded material still contain significant quantities of rare earth elements, including neodymium (Nd), praseodymium (Pr), dysprosium (Dy), terbium (Tb), yttrium (Y), lanthanum (La), cerium (Ce), samarium (Sm) and europium (Eu). Depending on the original ore, tailings may also contain scandium (Sc), gallium (Ga), vanadium (V), titanium (Ti), lithium (Li), cobalt (Co) and other valuable metals.
Our biological separation technologies help mining companies unlock additional value from historical tailings without expanding mining operations, extending the economic life of existing assets while supporting environmental remediation.
Unlocking Hidden Value in Coal Ash
Coal-fired power plants have accumulated billions of tonnes of ash that contain economically important concentrations of neodymium (Nd), praseodymium (Pr), dysprosium (Dy), terbium (Tb), yttrium (Y), lanthanum (La), cerium (Ce), samarium (Sm) and europium (Eu). Coal ash may also contain recoverable quantities of scandium (Sc), gallium (Ga), germanium (Ge), vanadium (V) and, in selected deposits, lithium (Li).
Cerion Praxis helps power producers transform legacy ash storage facilities from long-term environmental liabilities into strategic critical mineral resources. By recovering valuable metals from coal ash processing streams, operators can create new commercial opportunities while reducing long-term storage and remediation costs.
Recovering Value from Radioactive and Complex Waters
Waters generated by uranium mining, rare earth processing and other industrial activities often contain regulated radioactive constituents together with valuable critical minerals. These streams may include uranium (U), thorium (Th), radium (Ra) and dissolved rare earth elements, including yttrium (Y), neodymium (Nd), dysprosium (Dy), terbium (Tb), lanthanum (La) and cerium (Ce).
Cerion Praxis develops selective biological separation technologies that enable operators to recover valuable critical minerals while supporting the treatment of complex radioactive waters. Our solutions improve resource efficiency, reduce waste and strengthen the overall economics of water management.
Recovering Value from Industrial Acid Streams
Large industrial facilities—including aluminium refineries, titanium dioxide producers, fertilizer manufacturers and hydrometallurgical plants—generate acidic process streams that frequently contain dissolved critical minerals. These streams can include scandium (Sc), yttrium (Y), lanthanum (La), cerium (Ce), neodymium (Nd), praseodymium (Pr) and other rare earth elements, together with gallium (Ga), vanadium (V) and specialty metals.
Cerion Praxis helps industrial producers recover valuable metals that would otherwise be lost during processing, creating new revenue opportunities while improving resource efficiency and reducing waste generation.
Enhancing Rare Earth Separation and Refining
The separation and refining of rare earth elements remains one of the most technically complex and strategically important stages of the global critical mineral supply chain. High-value elements such as neodymium (Nd), praseodymium (Pr), dysprosium (Dy), terbium (Tb), samarium (Sm), europium (Eu), gadolinium (Gd), yttrium (Y) and scandium (Sc) require highly selective purification before they can be used in permanent magnets, electric vehicles, semiconductors, aerospace and defense applications.
Cerion Praxis is developing next-generation biological separation materials designed to improve selectivity, simplify downstream processing and reduce reagent consumption. Our platform aims to increase recovery efficiency, lower operating costs and strengthen resilient rare earth supply chains.
Increasing the Value of Existing Industrial Assets
Cerion Praxis’s technology platform is designed to help industrial operators unlock additional value from resources they already own. Rather than requiring new mining projects or major changes to existing operations, our biological separation technologies recover critical minerals from waste streams, process waters and legacy industrial deposits.
We work with mining companies, aluminium producers, titanium dioxide manufacturers, coal-fired power plants, uranium producers, geothermal operators, hydrometallurgical facilities and recycling companies to transform environmental liabilities into strategic resources.