PGM recycling from catalysts in a closed hydrometallurgical loop with an optional cerium recovery

Abstract

Today PGM-recovery from spent catalysts is a standard procedure. Nevertheless still big amounts of these materials remain untreated. Furthermore the state of the art process is a very expensive solution and does not offer a recovery of all valuable materials. The present paper introduces a hydrometallurgical recovery method for PGM from spent catalysts either from petroleum or automotive industry developed in cooperation with the company Railly&Hill. It offers the opportunity for a locally small scale solution, with the advantage of short transport distances as well as low logistic costs. Moreover the energy consumption is lower than in other state of the art processes. Due to a closed loop of the leaching media, nearly no new residues are generated. Furthermore it offers the opportunity to recover rare earths from the wash coat, like cerium and with this forming an additional valuable product.