Extraction of rare earth elements from coal fly ash by alkali fusion–acid leaching: Mechanism analysis

Coal fly ash (CFA) in some areas contains higher levels of rare earth elements (REEs), which can be seen as a potential substitute for rare earth resources. As an effective method of hydrometallurgy, alkali fusion has been widely used in the recovery of precious metals from secondary resources. In this study, taking a CFA sample and five REEs named Y, La, Ce, Pr, and Nd in the sample as objects, the mechanism of alkali fusion processes of CFA...