Recymelt (recovery of solid residue from smelting or refining furnaces)
Partnership: CRM, CTP, CRIBC, ISSeP, ULg-GeMMe
Grant amount: €961,767
Research period: 24 months
Schedule: Collective research
Industry and human activities cause a large quantity of by-products (dust, slag, consumer goods waste, etc.) which are considered as waste and end up in landfills. However, they contain constituents with high added value (Ni, Cr, Zn, Pb, etc.) but the latter are not used due to a lack of suitable recycling channels. These by-products represent hundreds of thousands of tonnes per year in Wallonia and are a source of pollution and wastage of natural resources. There is also the environmental impact of the transport of raw materials from abroad while potential deposits are available in the form of landfill sites or polluted industrial sites. The “Recymelt” project aims to develop a new method of recovering this residue by high-temperature melting or melt reduction in smelting or refining furnaces to recover metal elements. In addition to the technical aspect and economic profitability, environmental impacts on air quality have also been studied. This project perfectly corresponds to the expertise developed by the institute in recent years on the environmental impact of industrial processes.