Australian engineering-led knowledgeEvidence · Context · Application

Technical case record · Metals recovery

Missouri cobalt and nickel tailings recovery

Legacy tailings were evaluated and reprocessed for cobalt-bearing and nickel-bearing concentrates alongside closure works.

Fredericktown, Missouri, USADemonstration / redevelopmentDemonstration evidence

What was developed or tested

The case combines secondary-resource recovery with characterisation, processing and capping of remaining material.

What the evidence supports

An institutional case showing how critical-mineral recovery can be paired with remediation. Public performance data are more limited than for mature operators.

Environmental and technical uncertainty

Recovery can reduce a legacy inventory, but the balance between concentrate production, residual chemistry and final cover performance controls net benefit.

Benefit-case screening lens

Potential value: Recovered metal revenue, critical-mineral supply, improved resource efficiency and possible reduction of a legacy or active tailings inventory.

Deployment constraints: Representative grade, mineral deportment, recovery, throughput, reagents, energy, CAPEX, commodity price and management of the reprocessed residue.

Question before applying elsewhere

Do grade variability, mineral deportment, recovery, reagent demand and residual-waste management support a viable site-specific flowsheet?

Sources

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