Scientists from Germany have developed a new method to efficiently extract rare earth metals such as Yttrium, Praseodymium and Dysprosium from deep-sea rocks that can be used in smartphones and other electronic gadgets.
Scientists have unearthed an untapped source of rare earth elements widely used in cell phones in deep sea deposits that lie under the sea. So, now there is a possibility that your future smartphone may be made out from deep-sea rocks!
With millions of smartphones and other gadgets using rare earth metals, supplies of these high-tech materials may become scarce.
The potential deep-sea sources of rare earth elements are actually nodules of iron and manganese that are abundantly found on the ocean floor. German researchers have successfully developed a method to efficiently extract these rare earth metals using the solvent desferrioxamine-B, according to the report.
Source: http://www.delhidailynews.com