Selective Separation of Rare Earth Elements by Nanofiltration Membranes: Mechanisms, Performance, and Perspectives

Rare earth elements (REEs) are critical for advanced manufacturing and clean energy, yet their separation remains extremely challenging due to the nearly identical ionic radii of adjacent lanthanides. Conventional solvent extraction, ion exchange, and precipitation methods are limited by their high reagent consumption, slow kinetics, poor selectivity, and environmental burdens. Nanofiltration (NF) offers a green and efficient alternative—operating in the aqueous phase with low energy demand and continuous high throughput. This review systematically summarizes NF-based REE separation. We first elucidate the fundamental mechanisms (size exclusion, Donnan exclusion, dielectric exclusion, and complexation enhancement), and discuss how lanthanide hydration chemistry underpins these synergistic effects. Membrane materials, from commercial to biomimetic, are critically surveyed, with an emphasis on strategies to overcome the trade-off between permeability and selectivity. The impacts of operating conditions and solution chemistry are analyzed, and NF applications ranging from single REE systems to real leachates are assessed. A comparative evaluation positions NF against conventional technologies. Key challenges remain: poor adjacent REE selectivity, membrane fouling, performance loss at high salinity, chemical instability, and a gap between model and real feeds. Future directions include designing high-selectivity membranes, integrating machine learning optimization, establishing standardized protocols, and realizing closed-loop process integration.