HOUGHTON, MI— Michigan Technological University has received more than $1 million from the U.S. Department of Energy to convert iron ore waste into usable iron.
The DOE’s Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation this week awarded $117 million dollars to 56 projects that will strengthen the competitiveness of key American industries through energy and cost-saving innovations.
Tech will use its $1.03 million to develop technology to convert low-cost, low-grade iron ore waste into iron using “bioleaching.” The process uses microorganisms to concentrate and purify iron from dilute sources. The team will engineer microorganisms in constructed wetlands under controlled conditions. The goal is to create a usable iron supply for ironmaking out of material that currently has no value.
