Urban mining and its role within the new circular economy approach

Abstract

This paper entitled “Urban mining and its role within the new circular economy approach” provides an overview of the recovery of valuable materials from technological and urban waste, addressing aspects related to metals, polymers, composite materials and rare earth elements.

First, the author emphasizes the importance of urban mining in the face of primary mineral resource depletion and the growing generation of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), as a basis for closing material life cycles in Colombia.

One of the central aspects of the work is the compositional characterization of urban waste using techniques such as X-ray fluorescence and diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and atomic absorption spectroscopy, demonstrating that printed circuit boards contain concentrations of copper and precious metals higher than those of conventional mineral deposits. This enables applications in hydrometallurgical and pyrometallurgical routes for the recovery of copper, gold, silver, palladium, manganese, cobalt and lithium.

Additionally, examples are presented illustrating the potential of spent lithium-ion batteries as a source of cobalt, lithium, manganese and nickel for new batteries and energy storage devices.

Finally, the study discusses challenges related to informality in WEEE collection, lack of processing infrastructure, and regulatory barriers, and highlights the importance of coordinating public policies and business models to promote the formal valorization of technological waste in the country.