Coal Burn Ash: A Sustainable Future Resource for Critical Metals Production

Abstract

In view of increasing global demand of rare earth metals (REMs), less availability and limited natural resources compelled the researchers to develop the feasible processes to recover REMs from alternative secondary resources. Present book chapter is focused to explore possibility of coal bottom ash utilization for REMs extraction as well as highlights the hydrometallurgical processes for the selective separation and recuperation of REMs from alternative sources carried out at CSIR-NML, India in collaboration with KIGAM, South Korea. REMs containing coal and its byproducts are need to be beneficiated, thus require grinding to release the encapsulated REMs which are interlocked with host particle. REMs recovery process consists of beneficiation-leaching and advance hydrometallurgical separation processes. Coal ash will have tremendous possibility for commercial exploitation of REMs after scale-up and pilot trials.