New flotation technology could transform mining and battery recycling

Researchers at Luleå University of Technology have developed a completely new material separation method by combining flotation and magnetic separation in a single system. The technology could reduce chemical use in the mining industry while enabling the recovery of valuable raw materials from both mine waste and spent batteries.

The development is led by Saeed Chehreh Chelgani, Professor of Mineral Processing at Luleå University of Technology. The work has been carried out within the WISE research initiative, in collaboration with materials science researchers.

But even before the project received funding through WISE, Saeed Chehreh Chelgani had begun experimenting with introducing magnetism into flotation processes.

“Many researchers have worked with flotation and magnetic separation separately, but no one has really combined the systems in this way before, in a retrofit system. I started thinking: what would happen if we introduced a magnetic field into a flotation process?” says Saeed Chehreh Chelgani, who is also a WISE PI.

The idea started as a simple experiment. The research team tested placing magnets around a flotation cell to observe how the particles reacted. The results quickly showed that the combination created unexpectedly efficient separations.

“At first, we did not even know if it was possible. But when we saw the results, we realized that we had discovered something very interesting,” says Saeed Chehreh Chelgani.

More than 500 experiments

The technology has now been tested in more than 500 experiments within the WISE and CAMM-CRM projects. The researchers have used the system for both mineral processing and recycling blackmass from lithium-ion batteries.

The work has resulted in four scientific articles published in highly ranked journals and growing international interest from both researchers and companies.

“We can see that the technology works for several different materials. But since it is a completely new system, it needs to be optimized for each specific application,” says Saeed Chehreh Chelgani.

The research team is now investigating how electromagnets can be positioned at different stages of the process and how magnetic field strength affects separation efficiency.

Could reduce chemical use in mining

Flotation is widely used worldwide to separate valuable minerals from ore, but the process often requires large amounts of chemical reagents and surface modifications. The researchers believe the new technology could reduce the need for these chemicals while also improving the recovery of critical raw materials.

“This could change the entire concept of flotation for particles with magnetic susceptibility. We can reduce chemical consumption and surface pretreatment while also recovering materials that were previously lost in mine tailings and waste,” says Saeed Chehreh Chelgani.

The technology is still in the research and development phase, and work continues with further testing, optimization, and patent processes. In the long term, the researchers hope to scale up the system for industrial applications in both mining and recycling.

“I believe this could open many doors for the future supply of sustainable raw materials,” says Saeed Chehreh Chelgani.