Life Cycle Assessment; Sustainability analysis; Economic analysis; Social analysis
Abstract :
[en] The mining industry is crucial to the current global economy; however, it confronts sustainability challenges. Recovering secondary metals from mining residues is a promising opportunity to enhance the sustainability of the mining sector. This paper introduces a Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment (LCSA) to evaluate the sustainability of a new valorization process designed for a residue from a sulfidic mine located in Sweden. Results show mixed environmental impacts, with higher climate change (+22%) but lower mineral resource use (-98%) compared to primary mining. Economic analysis suggests that with a CAPEX between 80 M€and 120 M€, the final NPV is between 8.2 M€and 48 M€, depending on the purity of the recovered cobalt. Social analysis reveals fair worker compensation and limited access to local resources as crucial social risks. In the case study presented in this paper, the LCSA provides valuable insights for future cleaner production and more sustainability-oriented decision-making
Disciplines :
Materials science & engineering
Author, co-author :
Di Maria, Andrea ; Université de Liège - ULiège > TERRA Research Centre > Biosystems Dynamics and Exchanges (BIODYNE)
Khoshkhoo, Mohammad
Sand, Anders
Van Acker, Karel
Language :
English
Title :
Towards sustainable resource valorization: A life cycle sustainability assessment of metals recovery from sulfidic mining residues in Sweden
H2020 - 776846 - NEMO - Near-zero-waste recycling of low-grade sulphidic mining waste for critical-metal, mineral and construction raw-material production in a circular economy
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