Space station biomining experiment demonstrates rare earth element extraction in microgravity and Mars gravity

Charles S. Cockell (), Rosa Santomartino, Kai Finster, Annemiek C. Waajen, Lorna J. Eades, Ralf Moeller, Petra Rettberg, Felix M. Fuchs, Rob Houdt, Natalie Leys, Ilse Coninx, Jason Hatton, Luca Parmitano, Jutta Krause, Andrea Koehler, Nicol Caplin, Lobke Zuijderduijn, Alessandro Mariani, Stefano S. Pellari, Fabrizio Carubia, Giacomo Luciani, Michele Balsamo, Valfredo Zolesi, Natasha Nicholson, Claire-Marie Loudon, Jeannine Doswald-Winkler, Magdalena Herová, Bernd Rattenbacher, Jennifer Wadsworth, R. Craig Everroad and René Demets
Additional contact information
Charles S. Cockell: University of Edinburgh
Rosa Santomartino: University of Edinburgh
Kai Finster: Department of Bioscience–Microbiology
Annemiek C. Waajen: University of Edinburgh
Lorna J. Eades: University of Edinburgh
Ralf Moeller: Institute of Aerospace Medicine, Linder Hoehe
Petra Rettberg: Institute of Aerospace Medicine, Linder Hoehe
Felix M. Fuchs: Institute of Aerospace Medicine, Linder Hoehe
Rob Houdt: Belgian Nuclear Research Centre, SCK CEN
Natalie Leys: Belgian Nuclear Research Centre, SCK CEN
Ilse Coninx: Belgian Nuclear Research Centre, SCK CEN
Jason Hatton: ESTEC, Keplerlaan 1
Luca Parmitano: ESTEC, Keplerlaan 1
Jutta Krause: ESTEC, Keplerlaan 1
Andrea Koehler: ESTEC, Keplerlaan 1
Nicol Caplin: ESTEC, Keplerlaan 1
Lobke Zuijderduijn: ESTEC, Keplerlaan 1
Alessandro Mariani: Kayser Italia S.r.l., Via di Popogna, 501
Stefano S. Pellari: Kayser Italia S.r.l., Via di Popogna, 501
Fabrizio Carubia: Kayser Italia S.r.l., Via di Popogna, 501
Giacomo Luciani: Kayser Italia S.r.l., Via di Popogna, 501
Michele Balsamo: Kayser Italia S.r.l., Via di Popogna, 501
Valfredo Zolesi: Kayser Italia S.r.l., Via di Popogna, 501
Natasha Nicholson: University of Edinburgh
Claire-Marie Loudon: University of Edinburgh
Jeannine Doswald-Winkler: Lucerne School of Engineering and Architecture, Obermattweg 9
Magdalena Herová: Lucerne School of Engineering and Architecture, Obermattweg 9
Bernd Rattenbacher: Lucerne School of Engineering and Architecture, Obermattweg 9
Jennifer Wadsworth: NASA Ames Research Center
R. Craig Everroad: NASA Ames Research Center
René Demets: ESTEC, Keplerlaan 1

Nature Communications, 2020, vol. 11, issue 1, 1-11

Abstract: Abstract Microorganisms are employed to mine economically important elements from rocks, including the rare earth elements (REEs), used in electronic industries and alloy production. We carried out a mining experiment on the International Space Station to test hypotheses on the bioleaching of REEs from basaltic rock in microgravity and simulated Mars and Earth gravities using three microorganisms and a purposely designed biomining reactor. Sphingomonas desiccabilis enhanced mean leached concentrations of REEs compared to non-biological controls in all gravity conditions. No significant difference in final yields was observed between gravity conditions, showing the efficacy of the process under different gravity regimens. Bacillus subtilis exhibited a reduction in bioleaching efficacy and Cupriavidus metallidurans showed no difference compared to non-biological controls, showing the microbial specificity of the process, as on Earth. These data demonstrate the potential for space biomining and the principles of a reactor to advance human industry and mining beyond Earth.

Date: 2020
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-19276-w

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