An innovative technological procedure for the complete processing and repair of waste titanium electrodes from industrial hydrometallurgical processes with a side reaction of water oxidation requiring electrical energy is the subject of research within the OxyRePair project, which will be funded by the Science Fund of the Republic of Serbia through the Green Program from 2023 to 2025. The project will be led by the National Institute of Chemistry, Technology, and Metallurgy at the University of Belgrade in collaboration with four other scientific and higher education institutions in Serbia. The research results will offer domestic and regional industrial environments a technology for the regeneration of waste electrode resources. Currently, the processing and regeneration of electrodes involve significant costs. The electrode production process will be operationally optimized for the first time to predict the production parameters for any type of electrode requiring specific processes. The research will focus on two key production steps: the mechanical repair of titanium and the formulation of activation for efficient water oxidation. The setup will be closely linked to the main objective of operational research, which is to predict the conditions of each individual step to achieve an acceptable operational life for the renewed electrode resource within an economically viable production process.
The project's results primarily concern specific industrial entities involved in electrochemical metal production. Companies that produce noble metal powders and metal packaging for food do not practice the regeneration of process electrodes as a step in a sustainable closed-loop economy; instead, they choose between buying new electrodes and repairing deactivated anodes based on cost-effectiveness. Deactivated electrodes accumulate as process waste and occupy production space. The project results will enable companies to close the loop in electrode use with an optimized on-site technology. In addition, project activities will propose specific procedures for the given production environment to extend the electrode's operational life and reduce the frequency of intermittent production process interruptions. On-site specific technology will significantly reduce production costs and improve industrial waste management. Deactivated electrode resources, which are disposed of as process waste, will be renewed by the users according to the proposed technology, which is currently not possible, making it an important ecological aspect of the project. This will significantly reduce companies' costs related to waste disposal, waste resource management, and the purchase of new electrode equipment.
The fundamental value of the project's innovative technology lies in its wide application, including cathodic protection processes for steel structures to prevent corrosion, treatment of industrial wastewater, and water electrolysis for the storage of 'green' hydrogen fuel from renewable energy sources.
OUR TEAM
dr Vladimir Panić, Project Manager
University of Belgrade, Institute of Chemistry, Technology, and Metallurgy
dr Jasmina Stevanović, Leader of work package 1
University of Belgrade, Institute of Chemistry, Technology, and Metallurgy
dr Miroslav Pavlović, Leader of work package 2
University of Belgrade, Institute of Chemistry, Technology, and Metallurgy
dr Marijana Pantović Pavlović, Leader of work package 3
University of Belgrade, Institute of Chemistry, Technology, and Metallurgy
dr Gavrilo Šekularac Leader of work package 4
University of Belgrade, Institute of Chemistry, Technology, and Metallurgy
dr Zoran Radojčić Leader of work package 5
University of Belgrade, Faculty of Organizational Sciences
dr Marija Mihailović
University of Belgrade, Institute of Chemistry, Technology, and Metallurgy
dr Aleksandar Šebeković
State University in Novi Pazar
dr Enisa Selimović
State University in Novi Pazar
dr Diana Dolićanin
State University in Novi Pazar
dr Maja Stevanović
Innovation Center of the Faculty of Technology and Metallurgy in Belgrade
prof. dr Srećko Stopić
Department of Process Metallurgy and Metal Recycling (IME) of the RWTH
Aachen University, Germany
prof. dr. Miroslav Spasojević
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Katarina Božić
Master engineer of technology, University of Belgrade, Institute of Chemistry, Technology and Metallurgy
Đorđe Gjumišev
Graduated engineer of technology, University of Belgrade, Institute of Chemistry, Technology and Metallurgy
This project is funded and supported by the Science Fund of the Republic of Serbia.