Abstract
The increasing use of rare earths elements (REE) in a number of recent technological innovations led to a rapid increase (>50% in last decade) in their applications. Besides, Europe is one of the most important regions of consumption of these substances. In this context, in its ‘Raw materials’ strategy, Europe puts the recycling at the centre of its concerns to secure its supplies in REEs. Recycling of these substances, on an industrial scale, remains somewhat developed while it presents numerous advantages over the exploitation of primary resources. Thus, in order to increase the efficiency of the use of the REEs and to decrease European dependence on these strategic elements, research and development efforts must be achieved in all areas of their life cycle whether it concerns exploitation of ores or end-of-life equipment such as the one. This paper shows the results obtained the work done in the frame of the EXTRADE project on the extraction of the Nd-Fe-B permanent magnets from the WEEE deposit, developing units operation of treatment of WEEE intended to retrieve the contents of the magnet type Nd-Fe-B and to develop thermal, physical and physico-chemical treatments for producing new magnets or fractions enriched in alloys of REEs compatible with a recycling in the hydrometallurgical production of REE.
Highlights
The developed countries face a persistent concern about the supply of critical metals
This paper shows the results obtained the work done in the frame of the EXTRADE project on the extraction of the Nd-Fe-B permanent magnets from the WEEE deposit, developing units operation of treatment of WEEE intended to retrieve the contents of the magnet type Nd-Fe-B and to develop thermal, physical and physico-chemical treatments for producing new magnets or fractions enriched in alloys of rare earths elements (REE) compatible with a recycling in the hydrometallurgical production of REE
The three representative samples were dismantled for characterisation
Summary
The developed countries face a persistent concern about the supply of critical metals. The fundamental issue is to ensure the supply of industries manufacturing for which these chemical compounds made from critical metals and alloys are essential, even though their availability shows vulnerabilities at different levels of their supply chain. In this context, the European Union released its report ‘Critical raw materials for the EU’ that identifies 20 metals described as strategic for the European economy as a whole. At the French level, the roadmap to improve the productivity of resources is marked by the implementation of the Plan of strategic metals and the creation of the COMES (Committee for strategic metals) Among these strategic metals, rare earths contained in permanent magnets of certain WEEE categories are a priority target of growing interest. Since the development of powerful magnets made of neodymium (NdFe-B) in 1983, the volume production of this material has increased dramatically
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