Medallion said the diagnostic testing of its novel monazite extraction process used feedstock of monazite sourced from an Australian mineral sand mine.

The test work is focused on correlating low cost "diagnostic" mineralogical and chemical data from "run of mine" monazite, said the firm.

The company said its process is designed to accept multiple mineral-sand monazite feedstocks and extract high-value REEs.

"The study we have just completed at ANSTO enables us to be increasingly predictive toward REE- extraction and separation process conditions," said Mark Saxon, CEO and President. "By acquiring a simple set of data from monazite suppliers, we can be predictive on the process conditions, costs and quantity of market-ready REE products." 

In January, the company selected Minviro to compile a life cycle assessment (LCA) for its proprietary process to extract rare earth elements (REEs) from mineral sand monazite that will quantify the process's environmental impact.

The process itself does not require additional mining for REE production, Medallion said, as it uses high-grade byproduct that usually is sent away as waste. It is scalable and transferable to both maximise profitability and minimise carbon dioxide impact.