A research team has developed a technique to effectively recover critical metals from waste streams, reducing the typical environmental impact of metal recycling.
The team is led by James Tour, a professor of chemistry, materials science and nanoengineering at Rice University, in Texas, USA.
Tour’s earlier work remains a foundation for the study, which applies Flash Joule Heating (FJH) technology to extract and enhance the clean recovery of critical materials without relying on environmentally impacted solvents.
In doing so, researchers eliminated the challenges of the traditional method, including energy-intensive processes and harmful waste streams with high acid concentrations, achieved through precise temperature control and rapid metal separation.
“Our process offers significant reductions in operational costs and greenhouse gas emissions, making it a pivotal advancement in sustainable recycling,” he said.
The approach has been shown to deliver efficient results, with scientists achieving metal purity over 95 per cent and yield over 85 per cent. According to Shichen Xu, a postdoctoral researcher at Rice and co-first author of the study, it also holds promise for extracting lithium and rare-earth elements, both of which are valuable minerals.
“This breakthrough addresses the pressing issue of critical metal shortages and negative environmental impacts while economically incentivising recycling industries on a global scale with a more efficient recovery process,” Xu said.
Today, metal recycling plays a crucial role in waste management by reducing the need for mining, thereby decreasing the environmental damage associated with raw material extraction, such as deforestation, water pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions.
