The International Meeting on Circular Metallurgy, organized by the Italian Metallurgy Association (AIM), will take place in Bergamo on November 28-29, 2024, and promises to be a key opportunity to evaluate the sustainable future of the metallurgical industry.
The main focus of the meeting will be the environmental and economic impact of circular practices, specifically addressing the recovery and recycling of metallic materials. The goal is to develop a „zero-waste“ industrial process, aiming to minimize the use of natural resources through careful selection and cleaning of materials, supported by advanced technologies, from artificial intelligence to biochemistry.
In this context, Mrs. Sandra Tedeschi and Mrs. Fransisca Pirone from the physical-metallurgical laboratory of OMCD Group, HI.Lab, have been selected as speakers, where they will present their work dedicated to circular models for Hard Metal production.
FILMS circular model: resource optimization
The first presentation, by Mrs. Tedeschi, “Recent Advances in a Circular Economy Model for Hardmetal Production”, highlights FILMS‘ success in reducing the use of primary raw materials down to 30% thanks to a circular economy model for Hard Metal recycling, initially developed in the 1990s and further refined in the following years. This model includes four different sources of secondary materials, from Hard Metal scrap processed through oxidation-reduction techniques to oil-containing sludge treated thermally. Reinforcing the sustainability of this practice is a rigorous approach to validating the recovered powders, with the aim of limiting the use of primary resources to less than 10%.
ResQTool Project: sustainable recycling of Critical Raw Materials
The second presentation, by Mrs. Pirone, “ResQTool Project: Sustainable Recycling of CRMs for Hardmetal Production”, highlights the ResQTool project, an EU-funded initiative focused on the sustainable recovery of Critical Raw Materials (CRMs) essential for Hard Metal production. The project involves thirteen partners from eleven European countries and explores innovative solutions for collecting and recycling materials such as tungsten and cobalt. A key aspect of the project is the adoption of bio-based chemical recycling methods that use biodegradable organic acids derived from agro-industrial waste. The objective is to improve the environmental impact of the production process and make the European sector more competitive and less dependent on external sources.
The presentations by Tedeschi and Pirone mark a step forward toward a more responsible and circular industrial production, with a positive impact on the environment and a reduction in associated costs. Bergamo will thus serve as a forum for stimulating and innovative discussions on the future of metallurgy, an event not to be missed!
