OXYREPAIR – A STEP TOWARDS MORE EFFICIENT HYDROMETALLURGY AND STORAGE OF GREEN ENERGY

An innovative technological procedure for the complete processing and repair of waste titanium electrodes from hydrometallurgy is the subject of research for the OxyRePair project, funded by the Science Fund of the Republic of Serbia from 2023 to 2025. The project is financed within the Green Program for Science and Industry Cooperation, and the lead organization is the National Institute of Chemistry, Technology, and Metallurgy at the University of Belgrade, which is conducting the research in collaboration with four other scientific and higher education institutions from Serbia. The research results will offer domestic and regional industrial environments technology for the renewal of waste electrode resources with a secondary water oxidation reaction using electrical energy. Currently, processing and renewing electrodes involve significant costs. The electrode production process will be operationally optimized for the first time to predict production parameters for any electrode shape required by specific processes. The research will establish two key production steps: mechanical repair of titanium and activation formulation for efficient water oxidation. The setup will be closely linked to the main goal of operational research: predicting the conditions of each individual step to achieve an acceptable working life of the renewed electrode resource for an economically viable production process. The project results are most relevant to specific industrial entities engaged in electrochemical metal production. Companies that produce precious metal powders and metal food packaging do not practice the renewal of process electrodes as a step towards a sustainable closed economic cycle; instead, they choose between purchasing new ones and repairing deactivated anodes, depending on profitability. Deactivated electrodes accumulate as process waste and take up production space. The project results will enable companies to close the electrode use cycle with optimized on-site technology. Additionally, project activities will propose specific procedures for the given production environment to extend the electrode's working life and thus reduce the frequency of occasional production process interruptions. The specific on-site technology will significantly reduce production costs and improve industrial waste management. Deactivated electrode resources, currently disposed of as process waste, will be renewed by the users themselves according to the proposed technology, which is currently not possible and represents an important ecological aspect of the project. This will significantly reduce company costs related to the disposal and care of waste resources and the procurement of new electrode equipment. At the domestic and regional economic levels, the project will offer a technological procedure significant for a larger number of important and modern industrial sectors that currently lack such a technological solution. The procedural solution also contains an aspect of innovation compared to equivalent traditional offerings in countries like Italy, Germany, China, and India. Globally, the project's results are expected to contribute to improving energy efficiency within the concept of engaging renewable energy sources. The fundamental value of the project's innovative technology lies in its wide application: for cathodic protection processes of steel structures from corrosion, industrial wastewater treatment, and water electrolysis for storing "green" hydrogen fuel from renewable energy sources.

More information can be found on the Energetic Portal website.