Innovations in Urban Mining

随着人们日益认识到保护城市环境的迫切需要，以及随后世界各地遵守环境条例的动机增加，循环经济、城市采矿和使用寿命结束的产品的再循环已迅速扩大。这个探索项目- -城市采矿的创新- -在从二次资源中回收战略材料领域提出了一个新的方向。拟议的跨学科研究将侧重于发展对超临界流体萃取（SCFE）的基本理解和实际应用-也称为“航空冶金”，即使用空气或气体的冶金-从废弃电气和电子设备中提取锂，钴，稀土元素和金。建议的SCFE工艺是对环境有害的传统湿法冶金或火法冶金工艺的替代方案。在这个“探索”项目中，首先，我们将通过实施系统的统计方法，对绿色和高效的城市电子废物进行挖掘，开发一种针对锂离子电池、荧光灯和电子电路板回收的首个优化的SCFE流程。其次，将采用突破性的跨学科方法，利用x射线吸收光谱（XAS）和光源同步加速器来阐明SCFE中络合过程的控制机制和超临界条件下过程的动力学。这种方法将阐明在SCFE过程中形成的金属螯合配合物的结构配位和原子间相互作用。目前还没有这样的知识，这限制了确定反应堆大小和几何形状的能力。第三，我们将产生目前尚无法获得的超临界CO2中螯合金属相平衡的首个同类数据集。我们还将通过开发热力学模型来阐明系统的复杂热力学，这些模型可以准确地预测从固体中提取有价值产品的行为，从而使工艺设计和工艺的经济评估成为可能。该研究计划的成功实施将有利于加拿大的经济和环境，同时创造一个世界领先的产业。在这个发现项目中开发的知识也将帮助其他研究人员将SCFE过程的适用性扩展到新的高度。如果这一过程被证明是成功的，它将把提取和回收过程从环境不可持续转变为自然友好和绿色的过程。这项研究的结果将直接通知加拿大的三组利益相关者：运营商；公众的;还有政策制定者。这个项目同样重要的成果是一个高素质的专业团队，他们拥有全球独特的技能和对SCFE的见解，为未来的绿色城市采矿应用提供动力。

With the growing awareness around the crucial need to protect the urban environment and, subsequently, increased motivation for compliance with environmental regulations around the world, the circular economy, urban mining and recycling of end-of-life products have been rapidly expanding. This Discovery project - Innovations in Urban Mining - sets out a new direction in the field of recycling of strategic materials from secondary resources. The proposed interdisciplinary research will focus on developing fundamental understanding and practical applications of supercritical fluid extraction (SCFE) - also called "aerio-metallurgy", i.e., metallurgy using air or gas - to extract lithium, cobalt, rare earth elements, and gold from waste electrical and electronic equipment. The proposed SCFE process is an alternative to the conventional hydrometallurgical or pyrometallurgical processes that are harmful to the environment. In this Discovery program, first, we will develop a first-of-a-kind optimized SCFE process for recycling of lithium ion batteries, fluorescent lamps, and electronic circuit boards by implementing systematic statistical approaches for green and efficient urban mining of electronic waste. Second, a ground-breaking interdisciplinary approach will be utilized to elucidate the mechanism governing the complexation process during SCFE and the kinetics in processes running under supercritical conditions using X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) and Light Source synchrotron. This approach will shed light on the structural coordination and interatomic interactions of metal-chelated complexes formed during SCFE. Such knowledge is not currently available, which limits the ability to determine the size and geometry of the reactor. Third, we will produce the first-of-a-kind data set for phase equilibria of chelated metals in supercritical CO2 that is not currently available. We will also shed light on the complex thermodynamics of the system by developing thermodynamic models that could accurately predict the extraction behavior of valuable products from solids that in turn will enable the process design and economic evaluation of the process. Successful implementation of the proposed research program will benefit the Canadian economy and environment while creating a world-leading industry. The developed knowledge in this Discovery program would also help other researchers expand the applicability of the SCFE process to new heights. If this process is proven to be successful, it will transform extraction and recycling processes from environmentally unsustainable to nature friendly and green processes. The results of this research will directly inform three sets of stakeholders in Canada: operators; the public; and policy makers. An equally important output of this project is a specialized team of highly qualified personnel with globally unique skills and insights into SCFE to power green urban mining applications in the future.