China wants to extract lithium, germanium from coal waste
What's the story
China is exploring the potential of coal waste as a source of critical metals such as lithium, gallium, and germanium. The country is capitalizing on its advanced extraction technology and industrial infrastructure to do so. Coal mining and burning produce a lot of waste materials like coal gangue (rock in coal seams) and fly ash (fine ash produced after burning).
Resource potential
Edge over other countries
Dai Shifeng, a member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and professor at China University of Mining and Technology-Beijing, told China Energy News that coal refuse contains a variety of metal elements. He believes it could become an important source for critical metal supply. While countries like the US, Australia, and Russia are also looking into metal extraction from coal, China's advanced technology gives it an edge in this area.
Industrial advantage
Integrated facilities in China's coal production lines
China's coal production lines already have integrated facilities for washing, chemical processing, as well as power generation. This gives the country a strong industrial base for resource recovery. With the growth of the new energy industry, demand for critical metals is rising rapidly. Extracting these metals from coal could be a promising solution to meet this growing demand.
Extraction hurdles
Need for careful monitoring
Despite its potential, Dai cautioned that successful metal extraction from coal waste would require careful monitoring of coal quality and composition. He explained that some power plants mix coal from different sources before burning it. This could lead to constant changes in the metal content of fly ash from the same plant, making extraction difficult.