Recent Advances in Non-Ferrous Metallurgy
A special issue of Metals (ISSN 2075-4701). This special issue belongs to the section "Extractive Metallurgy".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 15 February 2026 | Viewed by 10
Special Issue Editor
Interests: vacuum metallurgy; lithium metallurgy; rubidium metallurgy; novel metallurgical processes for high-magnesium silicate laterite nickel ores; environmental protection in metallurgy
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The fields of non-ferrous metallurgical extraction, high-purity metal production, and secondary resource recovery are undergoing revolutionary advancements. Driven by the urgent demand for high-purity metal materials from strategic emerging industries such as new energy and electronic information, as well as the global push toward carbon neutrality goals, the traditional metallurgical industry faces multifaceted challenges in resources, environment, and technology. In metallurgical extraction, breakthroughs in novel green metallurgical technologies—such as bio-hydrometallurgy and plasma smelting—have significantly improved the utilization efficiency of low-grade complex ores. For high-purity metal production, innovations in refining techniques like zone melting and electron beam refining have enabled key materials to achieve purity levels of 6N and above, meeting the stringent requirements of high-end applications in semiconductors and nuclear industries. In secondary resource recycling, advancements in AI-driven intelligent sorting and short-process regenerative metallurgy have increased the recovery rate of urban mining resources (e.g., electronic waste and industrial byproducts) to over 95%. Notably, modern metallurgical technologies are evolving into a synergistic "extraction–refining–recycling" innovation system across the entire industrial chain. Through core technologies such as molecular-level separation and targeted purification, efficient circular utilization of non-ferrous metal resources has been achieved. These technological advancements are not only driving the metallurgical industry toward greener, more precise, and intelligent development but also providing critical technical support for ensuring national strategic resource security and achieving carbon neutrality goals.
For this Special Issue, we welcome contributions focusing on non-ferrous metallurgical extraction, high-purity metal production, and secondary resource recovery.
Prof. Dr. Tao Qu
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- non-ferrous metal extraction
- high-purity metal preparation
- resource recovery
- external field-enhanced metallurgical techniques
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