As
mineral resources are dwindling, it is becoming increasingly important
to know how even the tiniest amounts of minerals can be recovered from
waste – or how minerals can be substituted for other materials in
industrial use. The VTT Mineral Economy innovation programme develops
new technologies for, for instance, the mining industry.
VTT Technical Research
Centre of Finland Ltd has launched an innovation programme for
developing new technologies for the recovery of metals and other
minerals, and improving the recycling of raw materials by means of
ecological product design. The objective is to turn threats, in other
words raw material scarcity and environmental challenges, into new
business activity and jobs in Finland and in Europe.
It has been estimated
that the amount of important minerals for industrial production will
dwindle in about twenty years unless we find new sources of minerals and
develop alternative sources of energy very soon. Such sources could
include tailings from mining operations and consumer waste. Various
methods could be employed to extract the valuable substances contained
in these more effectively than can be done today.
Substitution of critical raw materials in, for example, electronics and power tools also offers excellent opportunities for finding solutions for raw material problems. At the same time, attention must also be paid to product design, to ensure that valuable raw materials are easier to recover in the recycling phase.
Substitution of critical raw materials in, for example, electronics and power tools also offers excellent opportunities for finding solutions for raw material problems. At the same time, attention must also be paid to product design, to ensure that valuable raw materials are easier to recover in the recycling phase.
Olli Salmi,
Research Professor at VTT: “The current recovery methods are too crude,
and in the future, they have to be replaced with more refined methods
that save the environment.” As an example, he mentions the recovery of
gold using mushroom mycelium mat filters, a method developed by VTT. One
of the ongoing projects includes developing hydrobiometallurgical
recovery equipment for minerals to the pilot phase.
In the best possible case, recycled raw materials can be substituted for harmful or critical raw materials used in production.
In 2014, the volume of
mineral sector R&D at VTT was approximately EUR 6 million. The
project portfolio mainly consists of projects financed by the EU and
Tekes, as well as customer projects.
EIT Raw Materials Co-location Centre to Otaniemi
VTT Mineral Economy
innovation programme will collaborate closely with the innovation
consortium financed by the European Institute of Innovation &
Technology (EIT), to be launched this year. The EIT Raw Materials
community is going to set up one of its six Co-location Centres in
Otaniemi, Espoo. The primary goal of the Centre is to generate new
business activity, and provide education to entrepreneur-spirited
students and professionals in the field of sustainable production and
the use of raw mineral materials.
Other partners in the
project in addition to VTT are Aalto University, the University of Oulu,
the Geological Survey of Finland (GTK), Lappeenranta University of
Technology, Outotec, Metso, Spinverse and FIMECC.
EIT Raw Materials: http://eit.europa.eu/eit- community/eit-raw-materials