New Swedish technology recovers metals from water from an LKAB mine
Environmental technology company Chromafora’s new technology removes metals from mine water at the LKAB mine in Malmberget. A new evaluation shows that more than 99% of the metals are captured.
Swedish environmental technology company Chromafora’s SELMEXT cleaning technology separates dissolved metals from liquids by selectively capturing specific substances. The pilot plant evaluated together with LKAB in its Malmberget mine has now been shown to capture more than 99% of the metals in the mine water. The results from pilot-scale real-world operations are as good as, or in many cases better than, those previously measured in a laboratory environment.
Digitization demands great amounts of metals
The method, which selects substances for capture with a high degree of precision, allows removal of the metals from the concentrate formed. They can then be converted in the same way as metals from conventional mining operations. Thus the technology enables the mining industry to extract raw materials from waste from its existing mining operations, while also making sure the substances do not leak into the immediate surroundings.
Purifies water and provides new resources
Selmext technology combines conventional filter technology with selective chemistry, allowing the installation to capture the intended substances. In the conventional methods formerly used to treat mine water, all substances were mixed in a sludge for final deposition in a landfill.
The system is easily connected to existing treatment plants with different capacity requirements.
