Microbial Communities in Agave Fermentations Vary by Local Biogeographic Regions.

The production of traditional agave spirits in Mexico, such as mezcal, involves a process that uses environmental microorganisms to ferment the cooked must from agave plants. By analysing these microorganisms, researchers can understand the dynamics of microbial communities at the interface of natural and human-associated environments. This study involved 16S and ITS amplicon sequencing of 99 fermentation tanks from 42 distilleries across Mexico.

Recovery of rare earths from end-of-life NdFeB permanent magnets from wind turbines.

This work aims to recover rare earths from wind turbines NdFeB magnets through pyrometallurgical and hydrometallurgical techniques. First, a NdFeB hydride powder is obtained by decrepitation with hydrogen. Subsequently, this powder was subjected to a chlorination roasting process and successive leaching with water to bring the metals into solution.

Purification of LiCO Obtained through Pyrometallurgical Treatment of NMC Black Mass from Electric Vehicle Batteries.

The recycling of lithium batteries is essential for a sustainable energy transition. However, impurities in the products obtained from the black mass can lower their market value. In this work, lithium carbonate, which has the highest market share among lithium-based products, is purified using distilled water at controlled temperature, time and stirring speed.

Unravelling the genomic and environmental diversity of the ubiquitous Solirubrobacter.

Solirubrobacter, though widespread in soils and rhizospheres, has been relatively unexplored despite its ubiquity. Previously acknowledged as a common soil bacterium, our research explores its phylogenomics, pangenomics, environmental diversity, and interactions within bacterial communities. By analysing seven genomic sequences, we have identified a pangenome consisting of 19,645 protein families, of which 2644 are shared across all studied genomes, forming the core genome.

Transformation of Graphite Recovered from Batteries into Functionalized Graphene-Based Sorbents and Application to Gas Desulfurization.

The recycling and recovery of value-added secondary raw materials such as spent Zn/C batteries is crucial to reduce the environmental impact of wastes and to achieve cost-effective and sustainable processing technologies. The aim of this work is to fabricate reduced graphene oxide (rGO)-based sorbents with a desulfurization capability using recycled graphite from spent Zn/C batteries as raw material. Recycled graphite was obtained from a black mass recovered from the dismantling of spent batteries by a hydrometallurgical process.