Phys.org  November 19, 2024 The renewable energy industry is heavily reliant on rare earth elements. A team of researchers in the US (UT Austin, University of Kentucky, University of Wyoming, industry) estimated coal ash resources and potential for extraction of rare earth elements using data for the US. According to the data ~ 52 gigatons (Gt) of coal was produced in the US (1950–2021). Power plants account for most of the coal use. About 70% of coal ash was potentially accessible for rare earth element extraction (1985–2021) and was disposed in landfills and ponds with the remaining coal ash was used […]