Mineral processing, hydrometallurgy, energy transition, zero-waste approach, environmental remediation, re-mining
1. Supply of raw materials from exploration and mining
- assessmemt of physical separation efficiency of ores (including taillings) and eletronic waste - jigs, shaking table, flotation, falcon concentrator, etc
- implementation of a strict lab methodology to assess the efficiency of leaching reagents and to pursuit for greener reagents
- design of mineral processing flowsheets, from crushing to hydrometallurgy stage
- set remediation plans based on the study of waste dumps
- development of zero-waste approaches, finding applications for by-products
- co-develop strategies to enhance public perception on raw materials industry
FEUP is the largest faculty of UPORTO, with more than 8000 students, 86 courses and close to 1000 teachers and researchers across 9 engineering departments. 22 R&D structures are recognized and and evaluated by FCT (Portuguese national funding agency for science, research and technology), among which 8 of having awarded “excellent” recognition in the most recent evaluation. Since 2014, FEUP has been developing project and cooperation protocols with more than 500 companies. In the framework of Portugal2020, more than 50 R&D project with strong cooperation with industry is on-going. FEUP is member of the Business Innovation Network (BIN@), promoting the applied research, the open innovation and the preparation of scientific and technical missions. The Raw Material Group of the CERENA research unit brings expertise on three main areas: primary and secondary mineral raw materials; primary and secondary non-mineral raw materials and; eco-innovative materials. Challenges are tackled in a circular economy framework taking into account sustainability and efficiency of the resources, mostly in international partnerships. The Environment Group consists of a multidisciplinary team of academics, research staff and postgraduates, internationally recognized through the organization and participation in scientific committees of renowned international conferences, technical committees, international research projects and strategic international cooperation in research and innovation partnerships.
