Materials’ Criticality – Mitigation Options and Impacts

Dr Adrian Chapman Oakdene Hollins

20th March 2013 RSC Environmental Chemistry Group, Burlington House

What are CRMs?

Rare Earths

Tungsten

What are CRMs?

Industrial minerals often considered too – e.g. Fluorspar

Criticality Ranking – 12 Studies

Most Critical

Moderately Critical

Near Critical

Not Critical

Beryllium Antimony Bismuth Aluminium

Gallium Cobalt Chromium Boron / borates

Indium Germanium Fluorspar Cadmium

Magnesium Manganese Lead Copper

PGMs Nickel Lithium Molybdenum

REEs Niobium Silicon / silica Selenium

Tin Rhenium Silver Vanadium

Tungsten Tantalum Titanium

Tellurium Zirconium

Zinc Source: Oakdene Hollins

Oakdene Hollins – Critical Raw Materials

• “Mind the gap” – resource security strategies in an uncertain world (Oakdene Hollins’ White Paper, 2012)

• Critical raw material flows in the UK economy (for WRAP & Defra (UK), in press) (focus on electronic items)

• Critical metals in strategic energy technologies with Fraunhofer ISI and HCSS (for European Commission, 2011 & in press)

• Study on by-product metals (International Lead & Zinc, Copper and Nickel Study Groups, 2012)

• Expert review of material criticality studies (Private client, 2011)

• Study into the feasibility of protecting and recovering critical raw materials (for European Pathway to Zero Waste, 2011)

• Lanthanides resources and alternatives (for UK Departments for Transport & Business, Innovation & Skills 2010)

(Reports available from www.oakdenehollins.co.uk)

EU “Critical 14”

Source: Fraunhofer ISI (graphical representation).

Which CRMs are in which products?

Source: Oakdene Hollins for A

ntim

on

y

Be

ryllium

Co

balt

Fluo

rspar

Galliu

m

Ge

rman

ium

Grap

hite

Ind

ium

Magn

esiu

m

Nio

biu

m

PG

Ms

REEs

Tantalu

m

Tun

gsten

Automotive/Aerospace

Batteries

Catalysts

Cemented carbide tools

Chemicals sector

Construction

Electrical equipment

Electronics/IT

Flame retardants

Optics

Packaging

Steel & steel alloys

Technology specific concerns – EU SET Plan

EU JRC (2011, 2013) - Critical metals in strategic energy technologies

Data collection and

Dissemination

Resource Efficiency Strategies

Primary Production

Trade and International Co-operation

Procurement and Stockpiling

Responses to Materials Criticality

Source: Oakdene Hollins

Design and Innovation

Resource Efficiency Strategies

Primary Production

Opportunities for the chemical sciences

Design and Innovation

Source: Oakdene Hollins

Tungsten mined supply is 69,000 tonnes

Reserves are 300,000,000 tonnes

‘Criticality’ ≠ Geological Scarcity

Source: USGS

China, 1,900,000

Russia, 250,000

Canada, 110,000

Bolivia, 53,000

United States,

140,000

Other Countries, 600,000

Primary Production – Mining and Extraction

EU “Critical 14”

Source: EC DG ENTR

Sources: Guardian and Telegraph

Primary Production – Mining and Extraction

Environmental Country Risk – EU CRMs

Environmental risk considered as part of analysis Assess potential of supply disruption due to environmental policy changes LCA also evaluated, but not included

Source: EC DG ENTR

Environmental impacts of production

Source: Staal in UNEP (2010)

UNEP Data Ranking per kg

Material

1 Gold

2 Platinum (PGM)

3 Silver

4 Tantalum

5 Indium

6 Gallium

7 Mercury

8 Rare Earths

9 Molybdenum

10 Chromium

EC JRC Data

Source: EU JRC (2012) with own analysis

Role for Chemistry? Improved extraction and separation -

• Processing efficiency – minimise losses

• Economic access to lower ore grades - e.g. reduce energy usage

• Minimise impacts of processing – new technologies?

• Improved by-production – many CRMs are by-products of base metals

Antimony Beryllium Cobalt Fluorspar

Gallium Germanium Niobium Indium

Magnesium Graphite PGMs REE

Tantalum Tungsten

Supply entirely from by-production Supply partially from by-production

Design and Innovation - Substitution

Mattresses Permanent

magnet motors Lighting

phosphors Li-ion batteries

Natural Rubber Rare Earths Rare Earths Graphite

De-materialisation

Blend natural & synthetic rubber

Reduce rare earth content

Reduce rare earth content

Reduce graphite content

Alternative material

Synthetic rubber, alternative sources

dandelion

New magnetic materials

New luminescent materials

Titanium nanoparticles

Alternative system

Textile & foam mattresses

New motor types Other lighting

formats (LED, OLED)

Fuel cells, NiMH

Alternative products

Hammocks, sofas Improve internal

combustion motors

Night vision goggles

Increase public transport

Design and Innovation - Substitution

Relevant initiatives; • CRM_Innonet – CIKTN with other partners

• European Innovation Partnership on Raw Materials – European Union

— Target of substituting of 3 applications • FP7/Horizon 2020 funding linked substitution of critical raw materials

Source: Oakdene Hollins for

EU Critical 14

Limited options for recovery from recycling, remanufacturing and reuse in major applications. Most appropriate for substitution?

Resource Efficiency – Recycling and reuse

Post-Consumer Recycling Levels

Source: UNEP Recycling rates of metals

Post-Consumer Recycling Levels

Source: UNEP Recycling rates of metals

BUT

Not all recycling reduces consumption and individual uses

may vary

Rare Earth Magnet Recovery

• Hard disk drives (HDD) account for ~1/3 of REE magnet demand

• Processes available to cut HDD & remove REE magnets for recycling

• Chemical and metallurgical processes required for full recovery

• Wind Turbines & (H)EVs in long term due to length of lifetimes

Source: Oakdene Hollins for

Recovery from Waste Electronics

• Many metals used in very small quantities, e.g. on PCBs

• Technical and processing challenges

e.g. Current practice of shredding for recovery can limit recovery:

• Copper and precious metals recovered

• Rare earths and others lost in ferrous fraction

• Others materials are reactive – lost in slag

• Raw material concerns will continue despite lower prices due to resource nationalism and growing consumption

• These concerns have led to a greater awareness of supply chain risk, traceability/provenance and environmental impact

• Several mitigation options exist, however the most appropriate need to be selected for a given material and application

• The chemical sciences could have a role to play in at least 3 of these areas – Primary production – Design and innovation, through substitution – Resource efficiency

Summary

EC Projects on Raw Materials

EU Study on Critical Raw Materials

Revised list of EU Critical Raw Materials using wider scope and improved methodology

European Innovation Partnership on Raw Materials

Development of a Strategic Implementation Plan to promote innovative solutions the EU's raw materials challenges

EU Statistical Information on Raw Materials Deposits (Euromin)

Analysis of information on the quality and quantity of EU deposits, working towards harmonisation of data

Dr Adrian Chapman

adrian.chapman@oakdenehollins.co.uk

www.oakdenehollins.co.uk

Materials’ Criticality – Mitigation Options and Impacts

20th March 2013 RSC Environmental Chemistry Group, Burlington House