Manipulating quorum sensing to improve bioleaching from mine tailings

The project's aim was to investigate if the use of a synthetic autoinducer would induce biofilm formation, consequently improving the bioleaching of rare earth elements from alkaline mine tailings using the indigenous consortia. The demand for rare earth elements has increased because of the population increase and modern technology, and primary resources are getting depleted. Therefore, we are looking for sustainable secondary resources to extract rare earth elements from using environmentally safe methods such as bioleaching.