Scientists are exploring ways to recover valuable materials from industrial waste by drawing inspiration from natural processes. A research team led by Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) has been awarded $3.3 million from the National Science Foundation's Growing Convergence Research program to develop these methods. The five-year project is divided into two phases and involves collaboration between WPI, George Mason University, the University of California San Diego, the University of Massachusetts Amherst, and the University at Buffalo. The goal of the project is to recover critical minerals from industrial waste such as coal ash, red mud, and mine tailings, while using less energy, fewer harsh chemicals, and reducing the need for new mining. Researchers are looking at how organisms like diatoms (a type of microscopic algae), sea sponges, and plants naturally collect dissolved silicon and build complex silica structures under mild conditions. These natural methods could be adapted to develop more energy-efficient ways to break down silica-rich industrial waste. To enhance their research, the team plans to use advanced computational modeling and artificial intelligence. These tools will help them design specialized biomolecules and predict how they interact with silicon-rich waste. This approach could speed up the discovery of effective methods for recovering minerals and creating new materials. The project brings together experts in biology, geochemistry, materials science, metallurgy, engineering, computational chemistry, and artificial intelligence. The researchers will evaluate whether the technology can be scaled up for practical and economic use in industry. If successful, this work could lead to new ways of transforming large amounts of industrial waste into valuable products, reducing the need for newly mined resources and minimizing the environmental impact of materials production.