Environmental impacts of scandium oxide production from rare earths tailings of Bayan Obo Mine
Environmental impacts of scandium oxide production from rare earths tailings of Bayan Obo Mine
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白云鄂博矿稀土尾矿生产氧化钪的环境影响
DOI：
10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.122464
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发表时间：
2020-10
影响因子：
11.1
通讯作者：
Hu-Sheng Lu
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Lu Wang;Peng Wang;Wei-Qiang Chen;Qian-Qian Wang;Hu-Sheng Lu
钪（Sc）是最昂贵的稀土元素，被广泛认为是各种新兴应用（如第三代固体氧化物燃料电池（SOFC）电池）的最关键材料之一。预计全球钪需求将迅速增长，而其供应主要受到有限的矿产储量和与其生产相关的环境负担的限制。钪矿床在世界上分布较少，储量小，提取工艺复杂。大量Sc主要富集在尾矿中，尚未被大量提取。此外，对稀土生产，特别是钪生产的潜在环境影响的详细评估非常罕见。本研究旨在填补这一空白，以评估Sc2O3生产的环境影响，其中的技术过程是基于最近的项目回收稀土尾矿中的巴彦鄂博矿钪的工艺流程模拟。利用各种清单数据的协同作用，评价了精炼阶段和冶炼阶段涉及的5个主要工艺和22个子工艺的环境影响。研究发现，澄清阶段占总影响的88%，其中约56%由二次分离过程贡献。在10个评估类别中，人体毒性非癌症（HTNC）和全球变暖的空气（GWA）是Sc2O3产生的前两个重要影响。通过与已发表的结果对比分析，发现利用巴彦鄂博矿尾矿生产氧化钪的环境影响远低于直接利用混合稀土矿生产氧化钪的环境影响。我们的热点分析表明，消耗的蒸汽在铁分离（II）和草酸沉淀中的草酸是主要的贡献者的总环境影响的氧化钪生产。因此，应大力鼓励在其生产过程中采取减少使用和改善环境绩效的战略。该研究可为第三代SOFC电池的清洁发展提供可持续的原材料来源依据。
Scandium (Sc) is the most expensive rare earth element and is widely considered as one of the most critical materials for various emerging applications such as the third-generation Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC) battery. The global Sc demand is expected to increase rapidly, while its supply is mainly constrained by limited mineral reserve and environmental burdens associated with its production. There are few Sc deposits distributed in the world, with small reserves and complicated extraction processes. A large amount of Sc is mainly concentrated in tailings and has not been extracted in large quantities. Besides, detailed assessments on the potential environmental impacts of rare earths production, and Sc in particular, are very rare. This study aims to fill this gap to assess the environmental impacts of the production of Sc2O3, where the technical processes are modelled based on a recent project of Sc recovery from rare earths tailings in Bayan Obo mine. The environmental impacts of 5 major processes and 22 sub-processes involved in the beneficiation stage and the smelting stage have been evaluated with the synergies of various inventory data. It is found that the beneficiation stage accounts for 88% of the overall impact, around 56% of which is contributed by the secondary separation process. Among the ten assessed categories, Human toxicity non-cancer (HTNC) and Global Warming Air (GWA) are the top two significant impacts caused by Sc2O3production. Through comparative analysis with published results, it’s found that the environmental impact of Sc2O3production from the tailings of Bayan Obo mine are much lower than those of direct production from the mixed rare earths ores. Our hotspot analysis identifies that the consumption of steam in Fe separation (II) and oxalic acid in oxalic acid precipitation are the major contributors to the total environmental impacts of Sc2O3production. Thus, strategies to reduce their use and improve environmental performance in their production are highly encouraged. This study can provide a basis for sustainable raw material sourcing for the clean development of the third-generation SOFC battery.
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影响因子：
4.8
作者：
Chen W;Liu H.Y.;Lu J.;Jiang S.Y.;Simonetti A.;Xu C.;Zhang W.
通讯作者：
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影响因子：
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作者：
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影响因子：
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作者：
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通讯作者：
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影响因子：
11.4
作者：
Selina Weber;J. Peters;M. Baumann;M. Weil
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影响因子：
5
作者：
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通讯作者：
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