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Green Technology for Metallurgy and Secondary Efficient Utilization of Polymetallic Mineral Resources

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Resources and Sustainable Utilization".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (28 November 2023) | Viewed by 4944

Special Issue Editors

School of Minerals Processing and Bioengineering, Central South University, Changsha, China
Interests: new technology of green metallurgy in short process; complex polymetallic mineral resources and efficient utilization of secondary resources; theory and technology of tron and steel metallurgy

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Guest Editor
School of Metallurgical and Ecological Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, China
Interests: spent CIGS materials; urban mining; recycling technology; separation and purification technology; metallurgy progress

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Guest Editor
School of Metallurgy and Environment, Central South University, Changsha, China
Interests: efficient use of resources and environmental protection; theory and technology of alkali metallurgy
School of Metallurgy, Northeastern University, Shenyang 110819, China
Interests: intelligent ironmaking; low-carbon blast furnace; hydrogen metallurgy; ironmaking mathematical simulation

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

These days, human beings are facing increasingly serious problems in resources, energy and environment fields. The green technology for metallurgy focusing on cutting down the waste production, while increasing efficiencies in the uses of resources and energy, and secondary efficient utilization of polymetallic mineral resources by applying physical separation methods, such as magnetic, flotation concentration, chemical methods such as bio-, hydro-, and electro-metallurgy are both considered to be possible solutions to resource and environmental dilemmas. Therefore, contributions are sought in presenting metallurgical processes and related research with the aim to improve the sustainability of metal-producing industries, with an emphasis on innovative approaches and solutions that minimize resource and energy consumption; improve materials recovery, reuse, and recycling; and ultimately minimize environmental impacts. The purpose of this issue is to share problems, solutions, novel ideas and technologies in the allied fields of mineral processing and extractive metallurgy to support the sustainable development, the transition to a low carbon future and achieve our emissions targets as established by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. In this context, this Special Issue, “Green Technology for Metallurgy and Secondary Efficient Utilization of Polymetallic Mineral Resources”, welcomes research papers on current and future innovations addressing one or more (but not limited to) the following topics:

  • Hydrogen metallurgy;
  • Biomass or wastes as resources;
  • Cleaner production and technical processes;
  • Process intensification technology in metal-extraction;
  • Utilization technology of low-rank coal in metallurgy;
  • Separation and recovery technology of polymetallic or secondary resources;
  • Metallurgical pollutants emission reduction and treatment technology;
  • Environmental and sustainability assessment;
  • New technology of low-carbon metallurgy.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Lingyun Yi
Prof. Dr. Baozhong Ma
Dr. Yilin Wang
Dr. Jue Tang
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • low-carbon metallurgy
  • polymetallic resource utilization
  • metallurgical pollutants treatment
  • cleaner production technology
  • resources and energy recycling

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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25 pages, 8268 KiB  
Article
Numerical Simulation and Application of an Oxygen-Enriched Side-Blown Smelting Furnace for the Treatment of Electroplating Sludge
by Biwei Yang, Wei Liu, Fen Jiao, Lin Zhang, Wenqing Qin and Shanqin Jiang
Sustainability 2023, 15(13), 10721; https://doi.org/10.3390/su151310721 - 07 Jul 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 824
Abstract
In the oxygen-enriched side-blown smelting furnace for the treatment of electroplating sludge, fluent was used to simulate the gas–liquid two-phase flow process. The relationship between the lance diameter, lance inclination, bath depth, and the bath evaluation indicators were studied, and the oxygen lance [...] Read more.
In the oxygen-enriched side-blown smelting furnace for the treatment of electroplating sludge, fluent was used to simulate the gas–liquid two-phase flow process. The relationship between the lance diameter, lance inclination, bath depth, and the bath evaluation indicators were studied, and the oxygen lance spacing was optimized. The results show that the high velocity and high gas rate areas were near the oxygen lance, while the stirring dead zones with low velocity appeared in the central and bottom areas of the molten pool. The key parameters were optimized using single-factor analysis and multifactor comprehensive optimization. The results showed that the bath evaluation indicators were all at good levels under the optimal parameter conditions. These were comprehensively obtained as the following: the lance diameter was 25 mm, the lance inclination was 15°, the lance spacing was 1050 mm, and the bath depth was 1500 mm. The industrial test carried out in an environmental protection enterprise in Guangdong achieved satisfactory results. The test shows that the electroplating sludge containing 7.24% Cu can be melted at 1300~1400 °C to obtain matte. Compared with industrial copper slag, the smelting slag has a higher CaO and a lower Fe content. Full article
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15 pages, 7519 KiB  
Article
Efficient Utilization of Limonite Nickel Laterite to Prepare Ferronickel by the Selective Reduction Smelting Process
by Xin Wang, Deqing Zhu, Zhengqi Guo, Jian Pan, Tao Lv, Congcong Yang and Siwei Li
Sustainability 2023, 15(9), 7147; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15097147 - 25 Apr 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1451
Abstract
Ferronickel products obtained from the traditional process used to treat limonite nickel laterite usually assay very low-grade Ni, only 3–5% Ni due to the high Fe/Ni ratio of limonite nickel laterite. This paper describes an investigation conducted to upgrade limonite nickel laterites for [...] Read more.
Ferronickel products obtained from the traditional process used to treat limonite nickel laterite usually assay very low-grade Ni, only 3–5% Ni due to the high Fe/Ni ratio of limonite nickel laterite. This paper describes an investigation conducted to upgrade limonite nickel laterites for the preparation of ferronickel by using selective reduction smelting technology. By means of thermodynamic calculations and smelting experiments, the smelting separation mechanism and the behavior of P and S removal in the smelting process, as well as the influence of smelting factors, have been systematically identified. The best production index of ferronickel is obtained under optimized conditions as follows: smelting the pre-reduced lumps at 1525 °C for 45 min with a basicity of 0.60, MgO/SiO2 ratio of 0.30, and nickel and iron metallization rate of 94.30% and 10.93%, respectively. The resulting ferronickel features a nickel and iron grade of 12.55% and 84.61% and a nickel and iron recovery of 85.65% and 10.87%, respectively. In addition, the content of S and P contained in ferronickel is only 0.11% and 0.0035%, respectively. The ferronickel obtained from the selective reduction smelting process is a fine material for the subsequent stainless steel smelting due to its high Ni grade and low content of impurities. Full article
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14 pages, 3239 KiB  
Article
The Correlation between the Structure Characteristics and Gasification Characteristics of Tar Residue from Pyrolysis
by Jiahui Li, Weiguo Li, Xuefeng She, Jianhong Shi, Peifang Lin and Qingguo Xue
Sustainability 2023, 15(9), 7130; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15097130 - 24 Apr 2023
Viewed by 1078
Abstract
Pyrolysis is an efficient method for utilizing tar residue as a resource, and the structural properties of tar residue from pyrolysis (TRP) significantly impact subsequent gasification. The study examines the changes in the microscopic morphology, surface area, and carbon structure characteristics of TRPP [...] Read more.
Pyrolysis is an efficient method for utilizing tar residue as a resource, and the structural properties of tar residue from pyrolysis (TRP) significantly impact subsequent gasification. The study examines the changes in the microscopic morphology, surface area, and carbon structure characteristics of TRPP as a function of pyrolysis temperature to elucidate the influence of pyrolysis temperature on the CO2 gasification characteristic parameters of TRP. Additionally, the investigation explores the relationship between surface structure and carbon structure characteristic parameters and gasification parameters at various stages. The findings indicated that the surface morphology of TRP synthesized at different pyrolysis temperatures (500–900 °C) was divided into two stages: the development of pores and the jamming of pores. With increasing pyrolysis temperature, the bigger aromatic nucleus was formed in the TRP without complete graphitization, and more amorphous carbon was consumed. TRP prepared at a pyrolysis temperature of 700 °C had the best gasification reactivity. By combining XRD, Raman, and gas adsorption techniques, the correlations between the surface structure and carbon structure parameters and the gasification characteristic parameters were established to evaluate the main factors influencing the gasification reaction. In the early stage of the gasification reaction, the carbon structure played a more important role than the surface structure. As the gasification reaction proceeded, the relationship between the surface structure and the gasification reaction was closer. Full article
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11 pages, 5649 KiB  
Brief Report
Effect of Humic Acid Binder on the Preparation of Oxidized Pellets from Vanadium-Bearing Titanomagnetite Concentrate
by Guanghui Li, Yongkang Zhang, Xin Zhang, Feiyu Meng, Pengxu Cao and Lingyun Yi
Sustainability 2023, 15(8), 6454; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15086454 - 11 Apr 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1012
Abstract
In order to pursue the goal of low-carbon ironmaking, a new type of humic acid (HA)-based binder was applied to the preparation of oxidized pellets from vanadium-bearing titanomagnetite (VTM) in this work. Effects of the HA binder (or with limestone) on the balling, [...] Read more.
In order to pursue the goal of low-carbon ironmaking, a new type of humic acid (HA)-based binder was applied to the preparation of oxidized pellets from vanadium-bearing titanomagnetite (VTM) in this work. Effects of the HA binder (or with limestone) on the balling, preheating, and roasting behaviors of VTM were comparatively studied with bentonite. The embedded features of each mineral phase in sintered pellets, especially the crystallization and growth state of hematite grains, were deeply investigated by XRD, optical microscopy, and SEM–EDS measures. The binder dosage can be cut down by 50% when HA was used instead of bentonite. Fine hematite grains in HA pellets evolved into plump interlocking grains with ~5% of limestone addition. Pseudobrookite and magnesioferrite spinel phase formed at the optimal sintering temperature of 1250 °C, which could hinder the crystallization of hematite and affect the strength of final pellets. Full article
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