Project: Phosphogypsum Processing to Critical Raw Materials
| Acronym | PG2CRM (Reference Number: JTC-2021_233) |
| Project Topic | More than three-quarters of phosphate fertilizers produced globally are produced using phosphoric acid as an intermediate product, leaving4–6 t low-radioactive phosphogypsum (PG) per t P2O5 produced, as relevant by-product/waste. About 85% of the 5.6–7.0 billion t PG produced globally over the lifetime of the phosphate industry are disposed of in stacks in 52 countries worldwide. The largest stacks in the EU are found in Lithuania, Poland, Spain, Greece, Bulgaria, Serbia and Kosovo, the Netherlands, Belgium, Portugal and Finland. 3-4 billion tare accessible for recovery worldwide and approximately 2 billion t are accessible for recovery in Europe. At the current rate of production, these stacks of low-radioactive material are growing by some 200 million t per year. From a regional environmental point of view, PG maybe the single most critical processing issue of fertilizer production today. The objective of the project “Phosphogypsum Processing to Critical Raw Materials” (PG2CRM) is to further develop an innovative process for REE recovery from PG that has recently been patented by the coordinator from TRL 4-5 (lab-scale experiments) which is the current state to TRL 7-8 (continues pilot plant operation). The focus will be on the comprehensive use of PG and besides the opportunity to recover REEs from it, the remaining gypsum matrix will be used as an inexpensive material in construction/sound insulation. |
| Network | ERA-MIN3 |
| Call | ERA-MIN3 Joint Call 2021 |
Project partner
| Number | Name | Role | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | École des Mines de Saint-Étienne | Coordinator | France |
| 2 | Freiberg University of Mining and Technology | Partner | Germany |
| 3 | Institute of Nuclear Chemistry and Technology | Partner | Poland |
| 4 | Universidad de Huelva | Partner | Spain |
| 5 | NOVA.ID.FCT/ NOVA School of Science & Technology | Partner | Portugal |
| 6 | Czech University of Life Sciences Prague | Partner | Czech Republic |
| 7 | Biopolinex Sp. Z. o. o. | Partner | Poland |
| 8 | ALFERROCK GmbH | Partner | Germany |
| 9 | OCP S.A. | Partner | Morocco |