SUSTAINABLE RESOURCE MANAGEMENTOF RARE EARTHS AND OTHER CRITICAL METALS AND MINERALS-OAKDENE HOLLINS

8/7/2019 SUSTAINABLE RESOURCE MANAGEMENTOF RARE EARTHS AND OTHER CRITICAL METALS AND MINERALS-OAKDENE HOLLINS

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Sustainable resource managementof rare earths and other critical

metals and minerals

Nicholas Morley, Oakdene Hollins Ltd

12th January 2011


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Structure

The case for sustainable resource

management Implementation of policies and practices

for rare earths and critical materials


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Current and previous work

Lanthanide Resources and Alternatives for Dept for Transport/Deptfor Business, Innovation and Skills, 2010

Assessing Rare Metals as the Critical Supply Chain Bottleneck inPriority Energy Technologiesfor Institute for Energy, EuropeanCommission (in progress)

Study into the Feasibility of Protecting and Recovering CriticalRaw Materialsfor EPOW (in progress)

Material Security and Policy Instruments to Aid Substitution andRecoveryPaper for Green Alliance, 2009

Material Security: ensuring resource availability for the UK

economyfor RE-KTN, 2008


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Screening for bottleneck metals in the lowcarbon energy supply chain

Aggregate across PV, nuclear, biofuels, wind, smart grids andCCS in most optimistic uptake scenario

Te, In, Hf, Nd, V, Ga, Dy, Nb, Cd, Ni, Sn, Mo, Ag, (Se)

Data omitted as findingscurrently in draft


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Top Ten Global Pollution Problems

1 Artisanal Gold Mining

2 Contaminated Surface Water

3 Groundwater Contamination4 Indoor Air Pollution

5 Metals Smelting and Processing

6 Industrial Mining Activities

7 Radioactive Waste and Uranium Mining

8 Untreated Sewage

9 Urban Air Quality

10 Used Lead Acid Battery Recycling

Source: Blacksmith Institute / Swiss Green Cross , 2008


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EnvironmentalBurden

Added Value

FinalProduct

Parts andComponents

RawMaterials

O

SolidWaste Energy

or CO2

The supply chain for mobile telephones

Source: Clift and Wright (2000)


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Carbon benefits and burdens of using rare earthmagnets in electric vehicles


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Prices

Material security and social good issues may not bereflected in short term prices

Improvements in extraction and refining technologiesmay mean prices fall as availability decreases


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Use

End-of-Life

Manufacture

Purchase

Processing

Extraction

Production and Consumption

Source: Professor Steve Evans, Cranfield University


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Most valuable end markets for the EU Critical14 metals and minerals

Catalysts

Steel & steel alloys

Jewellery

Electronics / IT

Cemented carbide tools

Automotive & aerospace components

Chemicals

Glass


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(Proposed) resource management strategies

Product life extension

Remanufacturing

Cascaded reuse

Recycling

Collection

Pre-processing

Processing


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Summing up

Management practices for rare earth and other metals arejustified on risk, environmental and long term economic grounds

Risks lie primarily with business rather than in achieving UK/EUpolicies

Environmental benefits of rare earths likely to outweigh theirburdens

Strategies based on extending product life are required as wellas recycling

Low collection and extraction rates, low concentrations, varieduses give recycling problems

Individual producer responsibility and more sophisticated targetswithin producer responsibility legislation are helpful

Documents

SUSTAINABLE RESOURCE MANAGEMENTOF RARE EARTHS AND OTHER CRITICAL METALS AND MINERALS-OAKDENE HOLLINS