Clean and Zero Emission Processes for Chemical Extraction of Critical and Precious Metals with Deep Eutectic Solvents

使用低共熔溶剂化学萃取关键金属和贵金属的清洁零排放工艺

• 批准号: RGPIN-2022-03250
• 负责人: Ghahreman, Ahmad
• 金额: $ 4.66万
• 依托单位: Queen's University
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
• 财政年份: 2022
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2022-01-01 至 2023-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=761108
• 关键词: Clean; Zero; Emission; Processes; Chemical

The conventional methods for chemical extraction of metals have generally been used by the mining industry for the recovery of metals from primary (e.g. ores) and secondary (i.e. end-of-life products) resources. The mineral acids and organic extractants are the common choice of chemicals for metals extraction. The recovery of metals using hydrometallurgy is of major importance with the growth in metal demand, largely due to electrification revolution in our societies. In recent years, a novel medium for metal extraction, known as deep eutectic solvents (DES), has been introduced. DES carry similar properties to ionic liquids but with additional advantages of low cost, far less environmental impact, and easy synthesis processes for their production in large scale in mining and metals extraction operations. Introduced only very recently, DES have found some very interesting applications in metals extraction processes from primary and secondary resources, however a limited literature is available on this topic. Hydrophilic DES can be used for leaching of metals and have great potential to replace mineral acids, and to reduce water consumption in metals extraction processes. Efficient and selective leaching of metals from minerals or wastes is feasible by using DES. However, the kinetics of leaching as well as the physicochemical properties of DES are still limiting their large-scale application. Electrochemical recovery from DES is also possible but deserves further investigation. On the other hand, hydrophobic DES can be used to recover metals from aqueous solutions e.g., for the solvent extraction of metals, hydrophobic DES constitute credible alternative ionic liquids. In this proposal, we aim to explore hydrophilic and hydrophobic DES for the extraction and recovery of metals from primary and secondary sources. In the first part of work, we will focus on the synthesis and characterization of DES and optimize them for the extraction and recovery of metals. The metals of our interest include nickel, cobalt, lithium, rare earths elements, gold and copper. In the later stage, the optimized DES systems will be explored for the extraction and recovery of the said metals from primary and secondary resources. The long-term goals of this research program are to develop robust metals extraction processes based on novel DES systems and build a comprehensive understanding of the chemistry of the process. Within a long-term plan we will define the environmental and economic benefits of the DES systems. During the next five years, we will design and try different DES systems for metals extraction, using the fail-fast design system. The DES metals extraction systems have the strong potential to make a revolution in the way we extract metals from the resource materials, substantially lowering the water consumption and use of toxic reagents. Two Ph.D. students and four Master's students will be trained through this research program.

采矿业通常使用化学萃取金属的传统方法从初级（例如矿石）和次级（即报废产品）资源中回收金属，矿物酸和有机萃取剂是常见的选择。随着金属需求的增长，利用湿法冶金回收金属变得非常重要，这主要是由于近年来我们社会的电气化革命，一种被称为深层金属提取的新型介质。低共熔溶剂 (DES) 已被引入，它具有与离子液体相似的特性，但具有成本低、对环境影响小得多以及易于在采矿和金属提取操作中大规模生产的其他优点。最近，DES 在从初级和次级资源中提取金属的过程中发现了一些非常有趣的应用，但是关于该主题的文献有限，亲水性 DES 可用于金属的浸出，并且具有替代无机酸的巨大潜力。使用 DES 从矿物或废物中高效、选择性地浸出金属是可行的，但浸出动力学以及 DES 的物理化学性质仍然限制其电化学回收。 DES 也是可行的，但值得进一步研究。另一方面，疏水性 DES 可用于从水溶液中回收金属，例如，对于金属的溶剂萃取，疏水性 DES 是可靠的。在本提案中，我们的目标是探索用于从初级和次级来源中提取和回收金属的亲水性和疏水性 DES。在工作的第一部分中，我们将重点关注 DES 的合成和表征并对其进行优化。我们感兴趣的金属包括镍、钴、锂、稀土元素、金和铜。后期将探索优化的DES系统来提取和回收这些金属。该研究计划的长期目标是开发基于新型 DES 系统的稳健金属提取工艺，并在长期计划中全面了解该工艺的化学原理。以及 DES 系统的经济效益。在接下来的五年中，我们将使用快速失败设计系统来设计和尝试不同的 DES 系统。DES 金属提取系统具有带来革命性变革的巨大潜力。我们从资源材料中大量提取金属通过该研究计划，将培训两名博士生和四名硕士生，以减少水的消耗和有毒试剂的使用。