EU grant to transform industrial residues into materials for future energy technologies

Europe urgently needs to secure access to critical raw materials to enable the green transition. A new EU-funded research project in process metallurgy aims to contribute by transforming industrial residues into advanced materials for energy applications.

The project SURGE has been awarded a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowship under the EU Horizon Europe programme, receiving very high evaluation scores in competition with more than 17,000 applications. It is the first MSCA grant obtained within the subject of process metallurgy.

– This is a highly prestigious programme where both scientific excellence and societal impact are crucial. The top evaluation scores (overall 98.6%) demonstrates that the research addresses exactly the challenges Europe faces in developing resource-efficient solutions for the energy transition, says Sadia Ilyas, Associate Professor in Process Metallurgy and project supervisor.

Linking critical raw materials strategy with circular industry

The project combines the development of electrocatalytic materials with the valorisation of residual streams from hydrometallurgical processes. By recovering graphite from industrial residues and stabilising fluorine into mineral phases, an integrated process pipeline is created where resources can circulate instead of being lost.

This contributes to reducing environmental challenges in metallurgical processing while enabling next-generation energy materials and reducing reliance on primary and scarce raw materials.

– Global demand for critical raw materials is increasing rapidly. We need strategies that both secure resources and reduce environmental impact. The project demonstrates how industrial residues can become valuable resources within a circular economy, says Sadia Ilyas.

Strengthening European research collaboration

The project aligns with research within WISE and contributes to circular material flows and resource-efficient energy systems. It will also strengthen international collaboration and visibility within European research.

– Our ambition is to contribute to Europe’s raw materials strategy by transforming industrial residues into high-value materials for energy technologies. This is exactly the type of research needed to enable the green transition, says Sadia Ilyas.