Extracting europium from compact fluorescent tubes

Redox reactions ‘mine’ old fluorescent light bulbs for europium

A new redox method can extract and recycle europium from real-life waste such as compact fluorescent lamps. in just three simple steps this protocol yields the lanthanide in quantities at least 50 times higher than state-of-the-art solutions used by the chemical industry. Researchers at ETH Zürich have already patented the technology and created a start-up to commercialise it.

In contrast, the Zurich team has demonstrated that simple inorganic reagents can improve separation immensely – in just three steps. ‘We reach separations 50 times higher than current industrial processes, reducing the amount of waste as well,’ Perrin says.

The secret lies in sulfur-based ligands – a bioinspired solution that selectively separates europium from complex mixtures. ‘Tetrathiometallates are common in enzymes and also used as drugs to treat cancer and copper metabolism disorders … but their reactivity with rare earth elements had been relatively unexplored,’ explains lead author Victor Mougel.

MA Perrin et al, Nat. Commun., 2024, DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-48733-z