Sustainable Mineral Processing Technologies of Critical Energy Transition Metals

Dear Colleagues,

Copper and lithium are the most important minerals driving the energy transition. Copper is the basic component of electricity transmission and generation, while lithium is the basis of energy storage in electric vehicles. The demand for both metals is high, and there are social concerns about the capacity of our society to supply these back-bone materials to achieve decarbonization goals without the generation of another environmental problem.

Evidence suggests that the massive global exploitation of copper and lithium requires new technologies to achieve the expected level of future production in a cost-effective and sustainable way. Also, circular economy strategies with a reduction in the intensity of consumption shall be put into place to reduce the impact. Mine aging over time poses a significant threat for the future. For instance, copper mines over the last two decades have led to mine aging, which has been expressed as ore grade reduction, the deepening of open pits and underground operations, the hardening of rock, and increasing stripping ratios. In the last decade, energy intensity consumption, water intensity consumption, and solid residual production (waste, tailings, and slag) have increased significantly. This Special Issue explores the separation technologies that deal with the effects of mine aging on three key environmental footprint indicators: energy, water consumption, and solid waste management.

Therefore, this Special Issue is organized into four sections:

• Section 1 Energy consumption is the main driver of CO₂ emissions, and therefore sustainable energy consumption technologies are mandatory to achieve sustainable goals. Many technologies are in current development that have the potential to reduce the overall energy specific consumption per ton of ore treated or metal produced. Examples are ore sorting, coarse flotation, and new crushing and milling circuit designs, to mention a few.
• Section 2 Sustainable solid–solid and solid–water separation technologies have been a main area of development in recent decades, but still more work is required. In some parts of the world, water scarcity has become critical and the problem must be faced with massive tailing paste systems, filtration systems, and dry separation technologies. At the same time, the use of harmful and synthetic chemicals for chemical separation is being challenged, and the use of green chemicals and/or more environmentally friendly separation technologies is becoming the preferred option. 
• Section 3 Sustainable solid waste management focuses on how to handle the solid residuals generated during the production process. Case studies on the production and management of solid waste are a main interest in this section. New investigations regarding the reuse and reutilization of solid waste are a good example of improvements in this area.

This Special Issue aims to contribute to the disclosure of a variety of applications of mineral processing technologies for a sustainable future.

Dr. Álvaro R. Videla
Dr. Gonzalo Montes Atenas
Guest Editors

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• separation technologies
• lithium
• copper
• mineral processing
• flotation
• grinding
• crushing
• particle classification
• ore sorting
• dewatering
• tailing disposal
• mining waste management