The Critical Minerals Working Group unites UW–Madison strengths in geology, chemical and materials engineering, chemistry, data/AI, policy, and environmental social science to advance the full minerals lifecycle for clean energy and advanced manufacturing. We focus on responsible sourcing and characterization, low-impact extraction and separation, materials design/substitution, recycling and by-product recovery, and circular supply-chain analytics—integrating life-cycle assessment (LCA)/techno-economic analysis (TEA) and community/environmental considerations. Our goal is to leverage UW–Madison’s world-class critical minerals research and campus capabilities to build partnerships with industry, national laboratories, and communities that lead to environmentally and socially sustainable, high-impact projects addressing national supply-chain needs.
Strategic Focus
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Connects UW–Madison faculty, researchers, staff, and trainees working across the critical minerals and materials lifecycle, from extraction and processing to use, reuse, and recovery.
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Builds shared awareness of campus expertise, facilities, and ongoing research relevant to critical minerals and materials.
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Anticipates emerging federal, foundation, and industry funding directions and helps position teams to respond rapidly and competitively.
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Supports early-stage collaboration, idea development, and team formation ahead of major funding solicitations.
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Facilitates strategic engagement with industry, government, and community partners, including discussions around ethics, governance, and responsible innovation.
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Serves as a forum for interdisciplinary dialogue on the environmental, economic, geopolitical, and societal dimensions of critical minerals and materials.
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Helps communicate UW–Madison expertise and priorities to external stakeholders, including funding agencies, policymakers, and industry partners.
Membership
The Critical Minerals & Materials Working Group brings together UW–Madison faculty, researchers, staff, and trainees interested in advancing interdisciplinary research, collaboration, and funding readiness in critical minerals and materials.
Membership is open and flexible. Participants may engage in different ways over time, including attending discussions, contributing expertise, shaping funding concepts, or simply staying informed about opportunities.
Not yet part of the Working Group?
Click below to join and receive updates about meetings, activities, and funding-related opportunities.
Members
Title/Department/Division
Professor/ Industrial & Systems Engineering/ College of Engineering
Professor/ Biochemistry/ College of Agricultural & Life Sciences
Assistant Professor/ Chemical & Biological Engineering/ College of Engineering
Professor/ Chemistry/ College of Letters & Science
Professor/ Chemistry/ College of Letters & Science
Professor/ Chemistry/ College of Letters & Science
Associate Professor/ Civil & Environmental Engineering/ College of Engineering
Professor/ Civil & Environmental Engineering/ College of Engineering
Assistant Professor/ Civil & Environmental Engineering/ College of Engineering
Associate Professor/ Civil & Environmental Engineering/ College of Engineering
Associate Professor/ Materials Science & Engineering/ College of Engineering
Professor/ Civil & Environmental Engineering/ College of Engineering
Associate Professor/ Environmental Studies and American Indian & Indigenous Studies/ Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies
Professor/ Chemistry/ College of Letters & Science
Working Group Co-Chair/ Associate Professor/ Environmental Studies/ Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies
Professor/ Civil & Environmental Engineering/ College of Engineering
Assistant Professor/ Materials Science & Engineering/ College of Engineering
Assistant Professor/ Chemical & Biological Engineering/ College of Engineering
Working Group Co-Chair/ Assistant Professor/ Mechanical Engineering/ College of Engineering
Professor/ Materials Science & Engineering/ College of Engineering
Professor/ Geoscience/ College of Letters & Science
Associate Professor/ Mechanical Engineering/ College of Engineering
Assistant Professor/ Civil & Environmental Engineering/ College of Engineering
Assistant Scientist/ Geoscience/ College of Letters & Science
Professor/ Geoscience/ College of Letters & Science
Associate Professor/ Civil & Environmental Engineering/ College of Engineering
Assistant Professor/ Chemical & Biological Engineering/ College of Engineering
Associate Professor/ Civil & Environmental Engineering/ College of Engineering
Associate Professor/ Chemical & Biological Engineering/ College of Engineering
Assistant Professor/ Mechanical Engineering/ College of Engineering
Associate Professor/ Civil & Environmental Engineering/ College of Engineering
Area of Expertise
- Operations research
- Systems optimization
- Decision analytics
- Risk and resilience
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Plant molecular biology
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Gene regulation
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Environmental signaling
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Plant development
- Process modeling
- Supply chain optimization
- Circular economy transition
- Coordination chemistry
- Chelation
- Molecular approaches to selective capture
- Isotope separation
- Electrochemical extraction and recovery
- Recycling of Li and rare earth elements (REE)
- Geophysical exploration and characterization
- Sensing
- Environmental geochemistry
- Mineral–microbe interactions
- Contaminant remediation
- Critical minerals recovery
- Geomechanics
- Induced seismicity
- Remote sensing
- Damage mechanics
- Circular economy
- Criticality and life cycle assessment
- Phase-field modeling of microstructure evolution
- Machine learning for materials prediction
- Ferroelectric and magnetic dynamics at terahertz frequencies
- GPU-accelerated simulation tools for complex materials behavior
- Multiscale modeling of spin-lattice interactions and cavity magnonics
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Renewable fuels and chemicals
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Biomass conversion
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Catalysis and reaction engineering
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Sustainable materials
- Multi-stakeholder environmental governance
- Community engagements with industrial expansion (including mining)
- Grassroots resistance
- Nanomaterials synthesis and crystal growth
- Energy materials, solar energy conversion and storage
- Electrocatalysis and sustainable chemistry
- Supply chain geopolitics for energy-critical minerals and materials
- Rare Earth Minerals
- Above-ground sources of Energy Transition Minerals and Materials
- Background in social science research in China, Brazil, US, EU, Greenland, deep seabed, and outer space
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Unsaturated soil mechanics
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Clay and geomaterial behavior
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Recycled and industrial by-products
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Geotechnical sustainability
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Sustainable battery materials
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Electrochemistry
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Sustainable chemical engineering
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Environmental catalysis
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Reaction kinetics and mechanisms
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Waste valorization
- Molten salts-based electrochemical processes for selective separation of critical metals and crystallization
- Electrochemical refining of metal ores and oxides
- Computational materials science for materials design
- Ab initio electronic structure and multiscale methods for large time / length scales and thermokinetics
- Ab initio based modeling of electrochemical systems and processes
- Machine learning techniques for accelerating materials analysis and discovery
- Application areas: Nuclear materials, Battery and fuel cell electrodes, electronic materials
- Sedimentary geology
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Earth system evolution
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Stratigraphic data science
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Resource geology
- Radical energy storage
- Multifunctional and cognitive materials
- Soft actuators and sensors
- Development of membrane-based and electrochemical technologies for selective ammonia and metal recovery from waste streams
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Structural geology
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Deformation processes
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Critical mineral systems
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Geospatial analysis
- Geochronology
- Geochemistry
- Rock mechanics
- Geomechanics
- Mine design/modeling
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Electrochemical energy storage
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Battery materials and interfaces
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Materials characterization
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Sustainable energy systems
- Tailings stability
- Molecular simulations
- Mineral interactions in solution
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Power systems engineering
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Renewable energy integration
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Grid resilience and control
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Energy storage systems
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Sustainable construction materials
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Circular economy
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Material durability and performance
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Waste valorization